The Angel of Thunder
by TheGiftOfHeavenSun
Summary: Here, lies along the alley of fate, Misaka and Touma will face another threat, as the new arc descends from the heaven itself, here, they must face another problem, as Misaka Mikoto 'awakened'... Newest Update: The influence of Shokuhou Misaki!
1. Prologue: It All Began

_A/N: Nice to meet you, dear readers. This is my newest story, hope you like it. This idea was just popped from my mind, as the only thing that I couldn't ignore, so here I am, presenting you a story that hopefully could feel your sense of adventure and fantasy, with most romance between Touma and Mikoto, the pairing that I loved most. I loved review and opinion very much, because it could be something that increase my English skill, and I'm not a native speaker. So, please review! I beg you!_

**Prologue: It All Began...**

Living in a place where extraordinary things happened will invariably give you a sense of belief, a sense of superstition sometimes. Thus, you can be easily fooled. One can say that it is somehow frightening to have an extraordinary life, where the chance of survival is lower than catching a bullet between your teeth, but those whose life is unusual have created some kind of power and further inspiration. Well, it's maybe the reason why one can say that extraordinary life can bring something which is so much more than a modest life, wing to joy, flight to imagination, and gaiety in life and everything, It's somehow strange to see that the world full of awkwardness can descend to a city in specialty, moreover, to a city in which all of the experience, things, and ability can be described by science and technology, a place where occult can be avoided, and can't be recognized anymore.

Nevertheless, it is Academy City's place in the world, to be a city full of turbulence for one another. Located in a fraction of space in Tokyo, this city, whose population could reach 2,3 million people, is an utopia for learning and acknowledging supernatural power. Nevertheless, this is also a city full of mystery, where falling to the mystery of this city is the last choice that you can have in the seventh hell. Let alone, a chance of escaping that darkness of the city is almost improbable, burying you with an invisible burden that break your shoulder, ripping of your own skin as a consequence of taking the risk. That's why the awesomeness and awkwardness can happen inside this small, yet so beautiful town, including to a certain scientific brown haired girl.

Misaka Mikoto was in a very good mood. Strolling around the city as if nothing happened, she slowed her pace with a kind of expression that could be got from someone who had received their full success. Enjoying the warmth of the weak sun from the winter, accompanied with the ever lasting breeze which was blown beneath the midst of sacred dew, she closed her eyes, as the warmth radiance from the sun began embracing her flawless skin. The Tokiwadai Autumn-winter uniform covered her remaining skin, as the beige hue in it gave more color to the girl's body. Her skirt was blown by the gentle breeze, not for flipping it, but to give a certain kind of majesty and elegance as though she was the queen who was walking on the red carpet, with a mass of people were ahead, waiting for her. A simple, oh so gentle smile was visible on her face, as if it didn't need to be trained to do so.

Walking alongside her was her junior, the freshman Shirai Kuroko. Her pig tailed hair was blown with the same elegance as Mikoto's, as her orb of eyes was somehow glimmering with full of light. With the same uniform and outer appearance, it was not so confusing to determine her relationship with Mikoto. Disregarding the fact that the crowd would disturb her voice, Kuroko began speaking, as an amount of it vibrated the Railgun's eardrum. She faced her senior with a happy expression, as she walked with the same equivalence of the Andante music.

"Anything good recently, onee-sama?" Kuroko asked.

Mikoto raised her eyebrow for a fraction of second as she stared at her junior casually, something that she had done for quiet a long time. "Nothing's good Kuroko, I'm just enjoying the stroll, that's all. It is very rare to receive the sun recently," she said while still walking.

Kuroko's face was directed to the same path as before, as she closed her eyes with a knowing look on her face, as though she had recognized something in particular. She replied Misaka's statement with a hopeful, yet of so mischievous face. "Of course onee-sama! Walking with me is more than enough to give you joy! So why don't we go to the hotel and take a..."

A light blow (for Misaka's point of view) was a 'thanks' for Kuroko for saying the oh so stupid thing (oh so important thing for Kuroko) to her, as the sound of blowing fist striking a certain teleporter's head began penetrating the crowd, who started jeering at them with a confused look on their face. Kuroko immediately squatted, with a hand on her hair as the only treatment for the 'light' blow from her senior as her eyes were closed to endure the ever longing pain that could even bring someone to the nearby mental hospital. The railgun who was standing besides her sighed in exasperation, with the same equivalence of a thundering typhoon. Her sighed deepened as her ears began receiving the bystander's whisper for her action. Something like ''student's violence" and "Ojou-sama's behavior". She snorted. What kind of character did they hope from a her? She was just giving Kuroko a punishment. That's all!

"Your blow was still painful onee-sama. Just like something that I loved from my beloved Onee-"

Kuroko's words were stopped by another pain on her head, much more painful than before. It was Misaka'a axe kick, as her leg soared high to the air and landed it to Kuroko's head with the force that could make a black belt gawked in shame. Well, even though Misaka was not trained in martial art or anything in particular, the experience of 'giving' punishment to her junior was more than enough to make her accepted by the Anti-Skill. Let alone, she was not only apable of giving punch to her junior, as being only one type of attack that she could release. Misaka was also capable of doing "axe kick" (as Kuroko as its usual victim), "rolling kick" (it's very surprising that the vending machine was still operated until now), and "thunder kick" (poor Touma).

"Don't you start building stress over my head here!" Misaka scolded, as her high voice was much more louder than the impact of the hit. Kuroko must cover her ears to protect her ability of hearing. The crowd began watching the scene with a worried face for the teleporter, as though she would be killed in no time by Misaka. The blue eletricity began gathering over her head, a sign of annoyance and anger for a certain Railgun. Most crowd began backing off, or even walking straight nonchalantly, as if nothing happened. Mortified by the jeering crowd, Misaka started calming her uncontrollable emotion, and huffed.

"Okay, I'm sorry Onee-sama," Kuroko said with the sincerest smile that she could give, as she began standing up again to her previous position. Still massaging her head, she pointed her forefinger towards an alley. "As an apology, let me take you to another shortcut to the dorm!" she said with a fake smile. She must be awarded a trophy for a capability to have a smile after receiving a painful blow.

Misaka looked at the alley. It was a dark one, and maybe a creepy and disgusting one. Something which could hide a certain kind of scene that was unbeknownst to the civil's blind spot. The alley seemed to be full of darkness, as its black hue couldn't be defeated by the weak sun clearly, filled with perennial shadow of building and skycraper, but still, one could have a walk there. For a second, Misaka examined the alley with a worried look on her face, as though the alley could do something bad to her, leading her to another frightening fate that beckoned the possible suffering day. After that, with the darkened expression of the memory of her sisters being massacred in an alley like this, she sighed, as if she had been taken to a space and time where no children ever smiled and the sky was never blue.

"Lead the way..."

* * *

><p>Just in a distance of forty meters from Misaka and Kuroko, Touma and Itsuwa was having a stroll around the city. Around the midst of blissful sun and blue sky above as it was as clear as ever, something which was oh so rare to be felt in autumn, Touma began introducing a variety of landscape to Itsuwa. The spiky haired guy was wearing a black dark jacket covering his visible T-shirt, a regular uniform for a certain high school. A black pants was covering his strong leg, and he walked with a bored look on his face, as if he had done the same thing to every newbie of the people in the Academy City. It was not like Touma was too kind or something, nevertheless, it was Itsuwa's first arrival in Academy City, and the encounter with Acqua of the Back blocked her from getting more knowledge abouts the Academy City. Ignoring the crowd that decreased his capacity of voice, he was in his way to Tokiwadai Middle School, as one of the landscape that Itsuwa should see.<p>

Besides her was Itsuwa, she was still recovering from Acqua of The Back's attack, with a small bandage on her forehead. Excluding that, her appearance was still the same. She was wearing a pink T-shirt without sleeves, something that has covered her body for only God who knew. Her jeans covered her leg only to her knees. Graceful purple hair was disentangled to her shoulder, visually blown by the calm breeze beneath the sacred seraph. Her eyes surveyed the perimeter of her sight, as she began wandering around the city with Touma. She was surprised, to be honest, by a variety of technology around the Academy City, it seemed like she was transported to a land of the future, and what she was? A casual girl, no more than that.

"That's the Seventh Mist, a hangout place for student, and we are going to the Tokiwadai Middle School," Touma said as he pointing his finger to the cafe just besides them. "What's with the surprised look on your face?" he said, as he faced Itsuwa who was somehow... shocked as her brain started processing the amount of new things in the city. Touma couldn't help but grin, seeing the magician's surprise. Academy City's technology was indeed thirty years ahead than the other places.

"Ah, No..." Itsuwa said gently, with a gentle expression towards Touma. "It's just that this city is..." Itsuwa spoke as she stopped for her loss of words, not knowing what was the best adjective to describe the academy city.

"...too modern?" Touma asked, with a smile that half population of female in the Neccessarius church found heart stopping. "But shouldn't you be calmer ordinary?" he asked, with a curious tune arised from his voice box.

"I doubt Index was calm to see this before," she replied with her usual calm state that she had perfected since her birth, still as she was walking alongside Touma. "No commoners wouldn't be surprised by seeing this landscape, Touma," she continued with a smile, enjoying the warmth that she got from the radiance of the sun and from a certain spiky haired boy.

"Speaking of whom, how's Index? You kept connecting with the Anglican Church right?" Touma said, realizing the fact that Index was no longer with him. It was unusual not to hear her boisterous voice besides him.

"Well, she has no problem with that," Itsuwa replied. "Even though the Anglican Church's provision was depleted in high level. She had been given a nickname: 'food swallower' by the cook in the kitchen of the church," Itsuwa continued with the usual kind expression on her face,

Touma gulped. Index was definetely a high eater, maybe a monster should describe her food habit. Even though she was a nun, her greatest orientation was not God, but food, something that made Touma raised his eyebrow for Index's acceptance of becoming a nun, shouldn't being greedy was one of the seventh deadly sin? Nevertheless, that was not something that Touma was worried about. Index was in the Anglican Church, guarded safely by the magician. But, she depleted the supply of food with the equivalence of the jet train around the sand of time. Touma was related to Index. What if he must pay for the food that Index ate? Touma doubted that his allowance for twenty years would not be enough to pay that. If the Anglican Church were really that cruel, and if Touma had to pay all the food provision that Index ate, then…

Let's not thinking about that.

"Huh? Kamijiou-san? What are you…"

Without any warning of anything would happen, without bothering for asking any permission from the pedestrians to have done that, a high pitched sound began spreading around the area, discontinuing Itsuwa's comment without any alert. Itsuwa and Touma frowned in confusion as most of the students started covering their ears in agony, as though the sound had crushed their ears with the greatest force that it could give, that Touma was astonished by their ability to remain conscious in this condition. Their legs trembled continuously, finding difficulty in supporting their weight, as some of them began losing their capability to remain standing. Their pupils dilated drastically, and their sight seemed faraway, as their face showed the full fear and exhaustion.

The cry of the fallen pedestrians gave shivers to Touma's body, as their cry was far more frightening rather than seeing someone sliced in two alive. Touma and Itsuwa began surveying the area, their head moved back and forth, trying to find a trace of the source of this painful sound, and just for a moment of seconds, Touma's eyes were concentrated on a presence of an alley, which was oh so isolated that it demanded the passerby's look for it. It was a black and clandestine one, driving out the people's attention by the shadow of skyscraper. The alley seemed to give death from people's point of view, as its darkness tried to bury someone without any chance of escaping.

"Kamijiou-san? Where will you… Hey, wait!" Itsuwa shouted at him, with the sight of Touma started leaving him. They entered the alley without any further argument and complain. The darkness swallowed them, leaving the sound of the death and the victim's cry without any nice resolution ahead of them.

And what they saw in the alley was far worse than anything they hoped for.

In front of them, just ten more steps from the entrance of the alley, a pig tailed girl, wearing Tokiwadai uniform, remained unconscious. She was there, lying on the dark hard wall, with the cold wall as the only cushion. But her appearance could no longer be stated as a middle school girl, a fallen soldier was a better call. Her hair was in a mess, as if it had been pulled strongly by a massive grip. The uniform had been ripped off, and the head showed some amount of blood on the cheeks, forehead, and mouth. Her slender legs were bend to a painful angle, and improper one. The bruised covered all her body, and Touma wondered if this girl could even make it alive.

Not this girl, but it was Shirai Kuroko.

Her hands were still grabbing four needles, purposely ready for another fight for whoever had done this, but as Touma surveyed, the amount of needles seemed to be… not decreasing, or it was something that Touma could feel. Seeing her in this state made him somehow… sickening, as it was one of the most terrifying sights that he had ever seen. Nevertheless, she was still breathing, much showed by a constant move of her chest. Touma sighed in relief.

Until a terrible thought crossed his mind.

If Shirai-san was here, than most probably…

This was not good.

"Itsuwa!" Touma suddenly shouted, bringing Itsuwa, who observed the injured girl caringly back to the reality. She jerked backwards; with the preparation of fighting stance that she had trained from her first time she joined the Amakusa Church. "What? What is it?" Itsuwa said, fully shocked by the sudden rising voice of the spiky haired boy.

"Bring her to the nearest hospital!" he said, clenching his fist tightly that it started losing its original hue. "The hospital is just a hundred meters from here; you could even see the billboard and the sign showing the way! Go! Please!" he ordered.

Itsuwa was taken aback by the sudden order of the spiky haired boy. It was indeed true that she was not as knowledgeable about his usual behavior and emotion for facing this kind of situation; nonetheless, everybody could also tell that Kamijiou Touma was not someone who would order someone to take an injured girl to the nearest hospital. It was not his usual style, not even near. Usually, he would take the injured one by himself, as the faith of him to himself was so strong that it couldn't be broken by any peripheral circumstances. It was a serious condition, she must say. If that was not the reason, then…

"But… What about…" she started to complain, in a worried tone towards the guy who had saved the entire city, as the only thing that could relive her worry.

"Now! Please!" Touma repeated his order, and somehow, it created silence between them, as the stare of two different people from the science side and the magic side clashed, but it was not a stare of hatred or love. It was a stare of understanding, trying to acknowledge each other's condition, creating a certain telepathy that was too hard to be broken. For a fraction of seconds, the only thing that could be heard was a vague audible sound of crying people with the higher sound with high frequency, with the sudden howling wind that picked up, lowering the suspense between them.

The decision materialized for them, as the two friends began nodding with a simple smile which ensured the survival of both of them. Itsuwa gently picked the injured girl and left, taking her to the hospital, leaving Touma in the alley alone.

* * *

><p>"So this is Railgun, the third ranked of the level five esper. Really, without any power that she used to have, she was nothing but a trash."<p>

The man laughed, followed by the other three of them, increasing the number of variety of sound that had piled up the atmosphere. He was a tall man with muscular body, with a square face and narrow eyes. His black air was remained messy, with a crude expression which had been implanted on his face. He was wearing a light black jacket with black pants, all in black as it was hard to see him easily beneath the shadow of the skyscraper. He laughed hard at the sight of a brown haired girl who had been terribly abused, still groaning in pain as the noise of the high frequency sound penetrated her ears, disorganizing her brain.

Mikoto's state was far worse than Kuroko. Blood and bruised, with a somehow injured ribs, and a great amount of red portion of blood around her mouth. It was as if she had vomited an amount of blood after a great impact on her abdomen. She was breathing hard, squeezing her eyes as the only thing she could do to endure the pain, sitting on the corner side of the alley. It was a nice walk at first with Kuroko, until these guys showed up and began attacking them; using 'Capacity Down' from an invisible position that she didn't know where to attack. The biggest guy began punching and kicking them, attacking them with so much force that Kuroko was sent flying backwards and Mikoto's cry was the only one that accompanied her. She was having a hard time, she must say, as her ability was the only thing that she could rely one for self-defense, and her capability of martial art was not as good as the Skill-out.

Yea, they were attacked by the remaining member of Skill-Out.

"Really, 'Capacity Down' was a good invention," the leader said with an ugly expression his face, similar to someone who wanted to puke. "It was lucky that I could fix it, and it was very easy to persuade the scientist to make a smaller, yet stronger version; to make a good invention, that's all!" he continued, still with the same laugh from the previous one, a laugh full of satisfaction for defeating Misaka.

…until it was all stopped by the order of a certain spiky haired guy.

"Stop this right now!" a voice came from the darkness of the shadow beneath the sacred air. A voice that Mikoto had known for quiet a long time, a voice from someone she gave affection for, a voice… whose existence shouldn't be here. After Shirai Kuroko, not another one that Mikoto knew… that Mikoto loved must be influenced in this situation.

Not Kamijiou Touma…

His figure began becoming visible as his body left the shadow that blocked the light required for seeing. He had a determined face on his face, a face that he always used when he must face something which was more serious than his own life. His step was indeed calm, with the sound that said if everything would be all right. No fear, he faced all the Skill-Out Member. His eyes were as sharp as always, with a clenched fist, ready to punch, ready to protect.

"Huh? Who are you?" the leader said with an irritated voice. He then observed that the spiky haired boy was not affected by the high frequency sound from the 'Capacity Down'. It could only mean that this boy was only a level zero, someone who had no power whatsoever, that could be treated easily, or maybe just a certain young man who wanted to be a hero.

An idiot hero.

"You… What are you doing here?" Mikoto, in her sitting state, asked him with a weak voice, not being able to scold him or maybe even to drive him out of the scene. Nevertheless, regardless of that, she knew that the boy would never run from the scene. His chivalry could even defeat the paladin, and his loyalty was more than anything she could ask for.

Touma faced her, smiling, with the usual curve of smile that he always did. "Looks like you are in trouble, eh, Misaka?" He then clenched his fist, readying his usual fighting stance. "I will deal with this, from now," he said.

"Run… away…" she said weakly, as her vision began being blurry, and she must fight her own body from losing consciousness.

The leader face palmed, giving them a pitying look that just made his face becoming uglier and uglier. He then spat, and laughed at Touma. "Look like another brat is showing up. Trying to be hero, eh? Boys, get him!" he ordered, pointing his finger, and the three men behind him obeyed, and charge themselves towards Touma.

The first man came with a brute punch to his face, and Touma was sure that he would be unconscious if he didn't dodge it. Touma then moved to his left side, and crushing his back with joined fist, while kicking his stomach as he did so. The man groaned in pain, releasing an amount of spittle from his mouth, and fell to the ground. Seeing this, the second man took his chance and managed to hit Touma on his face, even though it was painful, but Touma was still standing, with a swollen red bruise began raising its head. The second man tried to punch him again, but Touma ducked and elbowed him on his ribs, making the second man's eyes dilated in pain and fell. The third man appeared hesitate to fight the boy who had defeated three of his comrades, but he controlled his fear and charged towards Touma, but Touma ducked fluently and in a fraction of second, giving a memorial uppercut to the third man. The third man fell with the sound of punching that penetrated the air.

Misaka Mikoto watched the scene with widened eyes. Touma managed to defeat the three of them, something that she was not capable of. His fighting's skill was more than amazing, as he succeeded slaying the three with only a little bruise. She, let alone in her current state, found it hard to describe Touma's action. Cool, great, fabulous, unbelievable, strong, name a hundred others and it could be surely found in Mikoto's mind.

Nonetheless, the leader was not so shocked. He sighed, releasing an amount of water vapor to the air and closed his eyes momentarily.

"Weaklings," he groaned. "Look like you are more capable than any silly brat, boy. Why don't you join us? We can use somebody like you," he said, taunting him, and maybe a little bit hoping that Touma would join them. A man, so young, with fabulous fighting capability; it was something that he needed.

"Stop your nonsense!" Touma said as he threw himself to the leader. But the leader was more than ready. With a split of second, just before Touma's punch met his face, he moved his head slightly to the left, missing Touma's punch, then, with amazing speed, he throw his forehead and hit it to Touma's. Touma, apparently surprised by the leader's capability in fighting, took some steps backward, observing the leader with a serious look, massaging his bruised forehead slightly. The leader's forehead sure was hard, Touma thought. He was not affected by the impact at all.

"You! Get out from here!" Misaka said, as she saw that the leader got the upper hand of the fight. "Or, you would be hurt!" she shouted again, with the most worried expression and tune that she could give, tear began forming in her eyes, not being able to see the boy he loved getting hurt. She was indeed not an emotional type, but seeing Touma like that, moreover, because of her, it was just… unbearable.

The two men didn't remember anymore that Misaka was there, watching the horrifying scene. They continued fighting.

Touma charged again, throwing a punch, but again, he missed in a slight second. In counter attack, the leader threw a two combos uppercut to his abdomen and lower jaw simultaneously, and Touma must resist his urge to vomit, with another surprised look. Not giving any chance to rest, the leader gave another right punch, accompanied with left punch to Touma's face, without letting him to react; making him took a long step backwards to avoid further punch on his face. Touma clenched his fist and gritted his teeth, finding a good opponent that he couldn't defeat easily (or maybe impossible). Then, the two charged towards each other, throwing a punch. Nevertheless, the leader managed to hit Touma first, and Touma was thrown to the ground just under him, closed his eyes in pain, giving a loud thud as the dust began taking its place in the opened air. Just when he opened his eyes, Touma could find shoe sole which was flying towards his face, as the leader tried to stomp on him. Touma managed to dodge and sat on the ground, with the leader kicked his left side, as Touma guarded it with his hand. Then, Touma managed to stand with some difficulties, but not long until the leader threw another punch to the face with his right fist, but fortunately, Touma managed to duck it. Nevertheless, the unfortunate came, as the right fist was followed by the left fist, striking Touma's face with brute force, sending him to the ground once more. Then, the leader threw all his body's weight to his knee and step on Touma's abdomen with his knee. Touma's eyes widened as an unbearable force began killing him, and the blood was vomited from his mouth with great amount. Not satisfied by his work, the leader sat on Touma's stomach and made a joined fist, taking it up to the sky, and sending it with its greatest force towards Touma's forehead.

"No! Touma!" Misaka said in pain, seeing at the boy's laying figure, with the same equivalence with seeing the death of the last man in the world. Blood was sprawled everywhere, from his head, his mouth, just everywhere. He groaned in pain, as the only thing that showed his life. Nonetheless, it appeared as if his ability to speak was decreased, as he found it hard to release any more sound. A portion of warm liquid; tear, began soaking Mikoto's hazel eyes like crazy, accompanied by her gritting teeth. She sniffled with every liquid that existed in her body. Seeing her junior, Kuroko, knocked out like that was horrible, but seeing Touma, battered, injured, laying motionless, were death. Her heart and mind were hurt with the direct impact of the scene, blanking her mind, as there was nothing that she could do to solve her own problem. Just dealing with some thugs and these must happen? Couldn't she do something without dragging him along?

"Look like this good for nothing boy is more than acquaintance for you. So what if I…," the leader took a knife from his pocket, with a maniac eyes and expression, then, he started readying a stance to stab Touma. "…kill him?"

Mikoto's eyes widened in fear. What was this guy up to? Out of the blue, rushing towards her, then, intending to kill even that boy, in front of her innocents little eyes, giving her no chance from taking a breath from seeing painful things? What had she done in the past to deserve this? What had she done that someone took a grudge toward her? What must she do? Her mind began swaying to and fro, processing everything that eager to crush her own body. Nevertheless, she remained still, restrained an urge to fall unconscious, and began shouting in the midst of the sound from the 'Capacity Down", disregarding any pain that throbbed her chest, punched her brain, and flayed her skin.

"Just kill me already! What did I do to you to deserve this?" she shouted with the last remaining power that she had, trying to shrug off every hurtful things that stab her heart. She coughed blood just after that, as her cough echoed in the perimeter.

"What did you do?" the leader faced her, and began speaking. "…after everything you had done to us, the Skill-Out?" he continued, and for a slight second, his expression was filled with agony, a memory, from the past to the present, reaching the light of future that was hard to be achieved. It was not a softened look, but rather, a hardened look, restraining any further memory to flow in… or maybe to flow out. "You had destroyed our home! The only place where we could be ourselves, you hurt our friend, with your so called power! Do I need any more reason?" he shouted back.

"Eh?" Misaka was taken aback by the last statement. Hurt his friend… with his power? But… she had maintained her power in low level every time she had confronted the Skill-Out, avoiding the probability of them dying. She was more confused than ever. That leader did this… for the revenge of his friend? He had thrown himself to sin and the darkness itself… for his acquaintance?

Mikoto's mouth opened to as she found another words for replying. But surprisingly, it was Touma's turn to speak, as his eyes fluttered open, and in irresistible pain, he spoke.

"What….do…you…mean?" he said weakly.

The leader suddenly faced him again, who was under him. He then took an observation towards the spiky haired boy with the utmost curiosity, deciding whether he should kill him now or later. Then, his expression softened slightly, most for the surprised of the spiky haired boy, as though the leader had done something shocking to him, and it indeed happened. Mikoto watched in curiosity, until the leader eventually began speaking, with a darkened face, facing the something that everybody knew that it must be hard to bear, and a word, a sentence, was flowing fluently from his tongue, with the fluency of someone who had done speech.

"My friend was killed by this electromaster."

* * *

><p>"What?"<p>

Misaka didn't know how to reply again anymore. What had happened here? This guy, the crude and bloody guy, did this for the sake, for the revenge of his friend? And here, Misaka Mikoto, was the bad one? The one who had killed; the one who had taken a life from someone and the one who had caused tear? What the hell she had done? Touma's surprise was not defeated by hers, as his pupil dilated slightly, to the impact of those words. A surprised expression was formed from his face, slightly taken aback by the leader's sudden thought. The howling wind began to pick up, for only God knew since when, accompanied the situation with its greater ability to relate so.

"Long time ago, I didn't have any friend," the leader began his speaking. "I was a level 0 esper who didn't have any ability. I passed the high school without any supernatural power in me, mean that I had nowhere to go, as this city looked at someone by his or her ability," he then faced upwards, facing the sky above, so far away that Touma wondered where he looked at. "Then, in the midst of confusion, I met him. He was a real inspiration, saying that level was not needed and important. Then, he took me to his hideout, the Skill-Out, and introduced me to others. That was the first time I had a place to live in, a place for me to be myself," he continued.

"We drank, we laughed, we did stupid stuff, but whatever it was, I was happy, realizing that it was not only me who had no skill, realizing that this guy would be my dearest partner from that time," he continued, closing his eyes in process, as the memory accidentally made him to do so. Somehow, Mikoto and Touma couldn't see him as a crude and bloody guy again, but rather, a man who needed utmost care and gentle hug from his mother.

"After that incident happened…"

He paused for a slight second, scratching his back part of the head as he tried to shrug off the painful memory. Then, he looked at Touma with a disgusted look.

"I was in the hideout, when I received a call, informing that my friend had been counter attacked by electricity user esper. From being a newborn, his heart was weak, even though his physical body appeared strong. He couldn't resist any direct attack like that. With two hours of painful suffocation and grief, he died. I heard that a doctor from another district could cure anyone with his ability, but he couldn't catch the electric train in time, as a massive black out happened that time," he said painfully, squeezing his eyes, trying to resist a great urge of crying just like a little baby.

Mikoto's eyes widened. An eletromaster; massive black out; the only one who had enough power to do things like that was only… her. And here, in front of her, standing, a man whose friend she had… killed, seeking for revenge toward her. Her mind raced unbelievably, as other things began crushing her brain, the sadness, the grief, the bereavement, the death, the delusion, and just every other negative thought that could be invented by a language creator. She couldn't comprehend the situation; she couldn't even get to know the condition. She fell to the darkness once more.

"Why didn't you kill me then…," Mikoto said weakly. "With me gone, everything would be over right?" she continued hopefully.

The leader chuckled, back to his normal expression. "Oh, no can do, dear. You will never know the feeling of seeing someone you loved dead," he said. Then, he faced Touma again, who looked at him as Touma gritted his teeth, and he took his knife again once more. "Let me have you feel that," he said again, preparing to stab Touma. "Boy, if you wanted to blame someone, in heaven or hell, where you ascend or descend, blame that girl! She was the cause of this commotion. She was the one who created hatred and pain. She was the one who was proud of her ability, but just crushing someone's life with it. She was lowest than any other insect in this world!"

"Stop…," Mikoto said.

"Do you think that it could stop me? Look at your condition, girl!"

"Stop…"

"Tch, noisy brat…"

"I SAID STOP!"

That's when it happened.

A blue explosion occured, deafing every ear that existed, with a blinding seraph which was as bright as the sun itself. The explosion was so powerful that it was enough to send Touma and the leader of Skill-Out three meters from their original place, making them groaned in pain as their body hit the lifeless pavement, completely unaware of the existence of the trouble that lied in front of them. The dust began ascending to the air, filling its numerous gap with its heteregenous being, as the crackling sound of broke pipe nearby began filling the area. The high pitched sound of 'Capacity Down' was suddenly gone, as though it was destroyed by the explosion itself. The nasty odor began flowing in the opened air, and as Touma observed, the dust then began forming some kind of whirlwind in Misaka's place, and gone with a fraction of seconds, leaving the standing figure of a certain hazel eyed girl with so much grief and sorrow.

Misaka Mikoto was not Misaka Mikoto again anymore. Indeed, she still had the same face and the same outer appearance; the torn Tokiwadai winter uniform. Nevertheless, as the dust took its disappearance beneath the midst of weak sunlight from the sun, accompanied by the howling sound of the whirlwind which still took place slightly, Touma's eyes widened as he took a glimpse of something on the back of Misaka's. It was a graceful being, taking shape of the blue wing, a pair of blue wings to be precised, displaying its power just by their frightening flap which seemed to be ready for hurting, disregarding any mercy that they had around the peripheral sight. The medium sized wings flapped themselves slightly, and Touma could feel that his hair spiked out above with a great force, and he must resist his tendency to kneel. It was as if the blue wings had disturbed the regularity of potential difference of each cells in his body. The blue wings was covered slightly by the line of blue hue, the electricity, creating catasthrope around the area.

Misaka's expresion was covered with grief and sorrow, too hard for a middle school girl alone to bear. It was so void, looking at something which was so far away, still, with her face covered with her own blood. It somehow made her kind of inhuman, something that Touma hated to see from Misaka. Misaka didn't stand, maybe 'float' was a better call. The wings was the one who lifted her light slender body, covering the ground below with potential electricity. Touma could feel that it was harder for him to breath, as the electricity began consuming the oxygen to become ozon, although the wind still occured. Touma doubted that Misaka knew what she was doing, or what she was thinking.

Misaka yelled, and with a sudden manner, a beam of blue electricity soared to the sky, even to the space, perhaps, and her body was guarded by improbable barrier of electricity, then, Touma's legs began trembling, finding it hard to support his weight. Every feronic material began moving toward Misaka, forming a circle around her as she looked at them with a vacant stare, creating more defense for her, and, as it happened, the feronic material began crushing towards the wall of the alley, creating massive indents that was hard to be fixed, accompanied by the hitting sound which could beat anything.

Then, Misaka faced the leader of Skill-Out, who watched the scene with widened eyes and fear. He couldn't expect that the Railgun could turn his plan like this, as his death appeared to be nearby, and his tomb seemed to be in sight. Misaka, then, with the utmost hatred that she could have, mumbling something with an unknown language, pointing her opened palm to the leader then, firing a solid beam of powerful electricity, with heart stopping sound that could make people fainted.

Touma reacted fast, despite of his battered state. He threw himself to the beam, and repeled it with his Imagine Breaker. The beam dissipated itself after ten seconds, as Touma's legs began wobbling because of the electrical current that flew wherever.

"Run away! You will die here!" Touma shouted to the leader.

The leader didn't need to be told twice, running as fast as a gazelle which was chased by a leopard. With a fraction of seconds, he had gone, leaving no trace but his old knife that he used to try stabbing Touma.

Now, in front of Kamijiou Touma, was the sight of a level five espers who governed any law influencing electricity. Still, with her blue wings that support her weight, she stared at him with a vacant eyes, and Touma, knowing every pain and grief that had been burdened to her shoulder, hoped not to fight her, just like he used to do for her sake. Then, he lifted his arms, and began walking to her as he shouted.

"Hey, Misaka! It's Kamijiou Touma!" Touma shouted with the remaining energy that he had, starting to walk painfully towards her. Each step was another suffer for him, as the electricity began more and more intense, and Touma couldn't understand why didn't he faint at that moment. Misaka began hurling balls from his hands, a ball of electricity, towards him, but surprisingly, nothing of the managed to hit Touma, only leaving another strong explosion in his right and left side. Probably a small tiny bit of her still remember that in front of her, walking towards her, was someone that she loved so much, someone whose death she never wished to see.

"We used to have a 'fake' date right? And another fun in penalty game? You remembered right?" Touma said convincingly, trying to bring back memory about him and Misaka, and it succeeded, as Misaka stopped her continuous dangerous balls hurling, and began staring at him with a confused expression.

Touma was now right a meter in front of her. Somehow, he managed to resist any amount of tiredness and exhaustion, with the company of pain and lightning from his opened wound and Misaka's electricity, together with the least amount of oxygen nearby. Right now, he must do something to stop Misaka, not by a force, not by something painful. He must think about something which was gentle, something that Misaka would need right now, and in a moment of seconds, a thought crossed his mind, and without any further argument, complaining, and thinking, he did it.

Touma threw himself toward Misaka, hugging her with the highest gentleness that he could have. His head was on Misaka's head, and his hand was gently rubbing her brown hair, with another hand embracing her neck, treating her as if she was the most fragile thing in the world. Misaka's eyes was widened in shock, as part of her began acknowledging who the spiky haired guy was.

And with a fraction of seconds, the blue wings disappeared, leaving numerous orb of light which glimmered around the alley, and the feronic material descended back to the ground, with the sound of falling material. Misaka's leg began giving up, and her eyes closed in a second, as the exhaustion and pain took her over. Nevertheless, Touma, caught her by his hands, and kneeling on the ground as the fragile body of the girl was lying on his lap, her expression was no longer vacant and void, but rather, a peaceful expression that she used to have to calm any more anger emotion, with the equivalence of an angel with his underlings.

Out of the blue, Touma could feel that the sky was becoming gray, and water droplets began falling from the sky. Rain, falling down, crushing the ground with its transparent hue, soaking both of the teenagers as something that could treat their wounds and exhaustion, with the company of the howling wind that suddenly picked up.

Touma saw the brown haired girl who seemed to be sleeping peacefully with a gentle smile crossed his face, forming an acknowleding smirk that could make Misaka's heart stopped. Without him knowing why, he moved closer to Misaka's forehead, as he planted a gentle kiss there, so much more than any other thing that Misaka needed, somehow blessing her with a good and peaceful slumber that she needed for only God knew since when.

"Good night Misaka..."

And the rain was still falling, covering them with sweet, somehow perplexing aura that was hard to be ignored, as the heart melting scene took place in front of it.


	2. The Guardian Angel

**Thank you so much for the review in the first chapter, guys. It meant a lot for me you know. I love you all!**

**Here comes the next chapter. Hope you like it!**

Chapter 2: The Guardian Angel

"_So this is Railgun, the third ranked of the level five esper. Really, without any power that she used to have, she was nothing but a trash."_

Misaka Mikoto was lying on the lifeless blackness, not knowing which one was the upper or lower side. It was as though everything that surrounded her body was nothing but darkness, the only one which kept her in company, the only one which would never cease until the second time the world faced the apocalypse. It was void, it was vacant, it was nothing, it was empty, and it was death, bringing an odor of the hell, as the blackness kept pressing a certain pressure that was hard to be controlled, hard to be born. As the surge of darkness kept pushing her, she felt as though she had fallen to an endless ocean trench, as the gravity would never stop itself from making her felt the impact and characteristic of a fall. She was frightened, she was scared, she was alone, and she was nothing but any other garbage which was thrown to the ocean.

"_My friend was killed by this electromaster."_

Another voice was heard; vibrating the Railgun's eardrum as the voice of the previous leader of Skill-Out stimulated her brain to react, dilating her pupils as her eyes widened in fear. Without her knowing why, her sweat gland began activating her previous job, which appeared to be forgotten for about a fraction of second, drenching her forehead with the equivalence of the ability of a waterfall. Even though the fact that Misaka hated to hear the voice which appeared to stab her fragile heart, the voice didn't seem to cease in a matter of second, as it continued its torture of crushing Misaka's brain. Although the covering of ears should be able to solve the problem, but it couldn't, with a proof of Misaka's action to do so. It was frightening, it was torturing, and also, it was suffocating, as her throat appeared to be blocked by the voice, stopping her from breathing fluently. It was a punishment, no longer anything than whatever it was.

"_Boy, if you wanted to blame someone, in heaven or hell, where you ascend or descend, blames that girl! She was the cause of this commotion. She was the one who created hatred and pain. She was the one who was proud of her ability, but just crushing someone's life with it. She was lowest than any other insect in this world!"_

Misaka really wanted to scream as hard as she could, releasing any pain that she had as the same voice, with different words began penetrating her crazy brain, somehow making her sensory receptor for pain becoming more and more sensitive, without anything for a release, only allowing a tortured expression that was too unhealthy for her, who should be able to enjoy her youth with nothing but friends and happiness. The sound kept spreading her body, repeating it simultaneously as her emotion started to be panic, and she really wanted to cry as loud as she could, disregarding any sense of dignity that she used to be proud of. The voice of the Skill-Out's leader then became louder and louder, being happy as its effort was more than enough to drive her crazy, and without her intending to know what will happen, without her caring for anything other than death rather than facing this kind of experience, Misaka's body disappeared to the lifeless darkness, sinking into an endless blackness, and she was gone.

* * *

><p>She woke up.<p>

Not allowing any moment to keep lying on whatever she lied on, she sat with the speed which could even shock a sprint runner, with both of her palms on the 'thing' she previously lied on, the only pedestal for her to support her weight, with her head faced upwards, shooting dagger at whatever that was placed there. Her breath was heavy, as though she was freed from an experience of suffocating, and it really was what she felt. As her brain began taking a glimpse of things that surrounded her, she finally realized that the 'thing' was a bed, and the ceiling was glaring back at her. The room was white, so much different from the place she used to experience, spreading an amount of comfortable aura as the odor of drugs and medicines began filling her nose. It was a hospital room that she was so familiar of, as the amount of her visit here couldn't defeat anybody than a certain spiky haired boy.

Misaka began surveyed the time and space that she was thrown into. It was a day time, as the window on the left side of hers allowed a certain weak light from the sun to the floor, coloring it with its golden hue, as eternal as the sun itself, mixed proportionally with the sound of chirping birds which could drive someone to an eternal peace just by hearing it. The wind was not dusty, but rather, it tried to fill the room with natural smell other than medicines and drugs odor. In front of her was a television on a wooden table that was set there to be the only sight of entertainment for any patient that couldn't leave the room. Nevertheless, nothing could beat and shock her rather than the sight of her right side.

On her right side was the presence of a spiky haired boy, sitting on the only armchair in the room, with closed eyes which appeared to cure his drowsiness and tiredness. He was a peaceful and kind being, as though he had been trained and carved by Mahatma Gandhi himself. He was the source of life in the room other than Misaka, as he slept on the armchair with a peaceful expression, as though he had nothing to fear, nothing to be afraid of. White bandage could be seen covering his forehead, blocking the bang of his usual spiky hair, and he didn't appear to have changed his uniform at all, and still, it was full of dirt and dust.

Not three seconds could be given for her to have a time together with Kamijiou Touma as her ears began sensing the footsteps of a light leg, and it didn't need more than another second to find who she or he was. It was a beautiful woman, maybe a few centimeters taller than her, an embodiment of a mature female. Her purple hair was disentangled only to her shoulder, just like Misaka's, giving a sense of similarity between the two females. Her eyes gave the room a calm and kind aura, as the purple orb of hers began finding Mikoto's stare. A sleeveless pink T-shirt covered her slender body, which appeared to be too tight for her big breast, much to Misaka's jealousy. Her legs appeared to be strong, covered by the jeans that seemed to be old. Her hands were holding a cozy blanket, which was folded very neatly, that could even make a veteran housewife jealous.

She gave a gentle and kind smile to Misaka and began speaking with the sweetest expression and tune that she could have, releasing any ability of hospitality that appeared to have been perfected since her youth. Her voice was low, much different from Misaka's tomboyish voice.

"Ah, you have woken up, are you feeling all right?" the purple haired girl, as she smiled brightly to her, giving her usual enchanting smile that she appeared to be able to give to anybody that she cared for.

"Ah, yeah, I'm feeling great," Misaka lied. "By the way, who are you?" she continued to ask with the most polite tune that she could use, as she faced someone which seemed to have a motherly figure for her, but in a fraction of seconds, she could feel that her sweat had gone to nowhere, as though her usual talk with this stranger was far better than ever. Having a usual talk was so much more different from talking about grief and sorrow.

"My name is Itsuwa, I served as Touma's previous guardian and one of his friends," the girl said as he introduced her name, still with the sweetest smile implanted on her beautiful face, gathering so much attractiveness and charm, which was enough to attract the rest of the high school male students. "It's very nice to meet you, and by the way, who are you? I think I have met you somewhere," she continued and accidentally, maybe without her knowing why, she tilted her head a little.

So this girl was Touma's guardian? This beautiful girl, with a weak outer appearance was his guardian? Misaka looked at her with a blank look began masking her face. Until now, she couldn't comprehend anything at all. How could there be so many girls who surrounded him? Was he a… woman attracting machine or something? Even as his guardian, he got another woman that Misaka Mikoto barely knew, and as his guardian, it meant that she was always be by his side, and somehow, a spark of jealousy began lifting its power, as she looked at her with a vacant, yet shocked expression.

Smile began leaving Itsuwa's face, fully eventually realized that Misaka didn't reply her question before. She looked at her with a confused face as the replacement of her gorgeous smiling one, with his fingers began moving to her cheek, tapping it with the company of other words that was flown stutteringly from her tongue. "Umm… Is there anything wrong?" she said worriedly.

Misaka finally came back again to the reality that she must face now, as her head jerked backwards, thoroughly surprised by Itsuwa's sudden question. "Ah, there is nothing wrong!" she said unconvincingly. "My name is Misaka, Misaka Mikoto to be exact. We have met before?" Misaka continued, asking herself and her eyes found something intriguing on the ceiling of the hospital, as though it could provide some answers that she needed. "Sorry, I forgot," she smiled at Itsuwa as a smile found its place, beautifying her face. "It is very nice to meet you!"

Itsuwa smiled again, and then, her eyes found themselves implanted on the spiky haired boy. Then, she slowly approached him, who was appeared to be unaffected to the noise that circled his ears, a sign that he was as tired as he could be. Itsuwa's flawless hand then moved to Touma's bandage which took its presence on his forehead, rubbing it with the greatest softness and gentleness that she could release, somehow preventing the spiky haired boy from waking up. After some amount of checking with eyes which were full of concern to her, as her connection and relationship toward Touma was something that she always considered as precious, resulting the greatest affection that she could give to him, she managed to form a smile on her lip, showing that the certain boy had no any more bad injury or else.

Misaka watched the scene in jealousy, getting more knowledge about another girl who was given by excessive blessing, appeared to care deeply about the spiky haired boy, showing a good relationship betwee them, which appeared to be more than friends, or at least it was what Misaka had in mind. But this time, she didn't scream at her or anything, as her body was still not in a its full form, preventing her from releasing any other spark of electricity or anthing harmful, let alone, this was hospital, a place where anyone could get the best treatment from the morning until the next sun arose, being noisy here was unacceptable.

Then, Itsuwa looked at her calmly, being unaffected by the look of jealousy that began covering Misaka's face. Itsuwa took the blanket from her hands, unfolding it, then, she covered it to Misaka's body neatly, as though it could give better protection and comfort. Misaka looked at her with a somehow, a bit surprised expression at the sight of the purple haired girl.

"This is for you, you may need it," Itsuwa said, giving her famous smile to Misaka as she covered her body with the comfortable blanket. Indeed, the blanket was very oh so comfortable that Misaka didn't demand it to be removed, displaying the greatest piece of gratitude that she would always do to anybody who was nice to her.

"Thank you," Misaka said, being clearly happy that she met a nice girl like her. This Itsuwa person was a very good person, as if there was no any tiny bit of guilt and mistake that couldn't be directed to her, with an addition of innocent look which resembled a child, and the inner behavior that was as gentle as kitten, but could give a great effect in anybody's mind and thought. She was really someone was granted with too much blessing, given by the hand of God himself, as the angelic seraph from the heaven above granted her with so many things, even something that she didn't ask. Nice, kind, beautiful, and innocent; every positive behavior appeared to be present in her, giving a perfect image to her.

But somehow, for that, Misaka really wanted to be like that, as the spang of jealousy that used to cover her mind was changed with a sense of admiration, as the individual which was standing in front of her had a peaceful aura that demanded nothing but peace and happiness. She was a good friend to hang out with, or maybe it was the image that Misaka caught in her mind.

"Ah, that's no problem," Itsuwa replied, giving a type of smile that deliberately would close anybody's eyes, being happy as the 'thank you' words from Misaka was something that she didn't need, but nevertheless, she said it anyway. To Itsuwa, even though she didn't know much about this Misaka girl, but it appeared that she was far stronger than her, with no look of shyness as she was as brave as ever, a disposition that Itsuwa really wanted. Let aside, it was as though Misaka could have a conversation with anyone, aside the difference in background or anything else, or the fact that she was talking to a stranger like her. Even a magician like Itsuwa knew about the fame of Tokiwadai Middle School, a school where all the richness of the world was directed in one place. Itsuwa could tell that Misaka was not an ordinary girl, in monetary capability or even anything. Nevertheless, she was having a conversation with her without any mockery tune that she hated. Misaka Mikoto was a very nice girl, she must say, showing no sense of distrust at all. She was someone that she could treat as 'friend' everywhere.

The silence began covering the two of them, as the comfortable aura was spreading aroud them. The two smiled each other, being reluctant to leave each other's face to show any sense of hospitality that they had. The snoring sound of Touma's sleeping figure was tangible, being unaffected by the conversation of the two, with the sunlight began entering the room with greater intensity, together with the company of calm breeze which brought the odor of tree barks.

"You were a very lucky girl, Misaka-san," she said, breaking the ice, genuinely honest as the calm aura began penetrating Misaka's brain, something that she could only get long time ago, when Misaka Misuzu still had her motherly figure in her brain. "You have this boy saving you, even protecting you with all his strength. If he and I weren't around, I didn't know what will happen to you and to your friend. Nevertheless, you should give your greatest gratitude to this boy when he had woken up," she said, facing the sky which was up there outside the window, as though it was something to keep her more and more comfortable and charming. It was not a lecture, but rather, a simple remainder which was conveyed with the greatest softness, finding it hard to not listening to it at all.

A thousand of memories and images began entering her head, as though Itsuwa's last statement was a stimulation to bring the memory back. She and Kuroko were leisurely strolling around the Academy City, they found themselves in a dark alley which Kuroko considered as a shortcut, a group of thugs began confronting them, even attacking them, and the arrival of this boy, as he fought the Skill-Out with all his strength…

And after that, she couldn't remember anything at all, other than her shout to the leader of the Skill-Out, pleading him not to attack Touma again. What she remembered last was a great energy that she suddenly had, as she felt something suddenly appeared on her back, and what she saw back then after that, was just blackness.

But somehow, what she saw from that images that time was not a torture again anymore, but rather, a heart melting scene, as she was touched by the action of the spiky haired boy, who kept his promise back then for protecting her with all his strength. His bravery was something that could even make the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse cried in shame, let alone, despite the great difference in strength, he kept fighting with the greatest wisdom and courage to make him went all through that. Misaka looked at the boy with a softened face, planting her expression with all her affections that she could release for the boy. Her brain began trying to find a good word for his action. Strong, brave, cool, awesome, fabulous, great, impressive, superb, wonderful, remarkable, incredible, but whatever it was, there was something that she could only whisper, to herself, as her voice found it hard to reach Itsuwa's ears.

"Idiot…"

Yes, he was an idiot. Even though what he said, really, there was no any hero that could do something like that. He was the one who found the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles. He was a selfless one, who was generous in spirit, who just tried to give back as much as possible and help people. He was the one who had justification for his action that was convincing for him. He was the one who understood the degree of responsibility that came with his freedom. He was a hero for all, her hero.

"And until now," Itsuwa began speaking again with the same serenity, as Misaka found herself looking at her once again, "he was the one who waited for your awakening. You had slept for one day, you should know that," Itsuwa said.

But then, without any alert for Misaka, she suddenly mumbled loudly to herself, making Misaka looked at her with a confused expression. "Ah, I must go, to give a report to my master!" she gasped at herself, realizing something that appeared to be her obligation. She took a thousand steps forward which seemed to be reluctantly, with a company of a glance to Touma with worried and affectionate look. Nevertheless, whatever it was, she managed to move her legs to leave, even though Misaka knew, that she didn't want to.

Itsuwa finally left, leaving Misaka alone with the spiky haired boy who was sleeping peacefully. Somehow, just right after she eventually realized that she was in the same room with Kamijiou Touma, with a proximity that she would always dream of, she blushed, raising an amount of fresh blood to her cheeks, reddening it with a color which could resemble the setting sun. After a slight moment of shaking head and bringing himself to the reality from any further delusion, the cheeks ceased to show their red color, changing her expression to a softened one, bringing peace just like a gift from heaven's sun. In a moment of time, words began flowing from her mouth, not with a fancy or poetic one, but a modest one, together with the softest tune that she could release.

"Thank you Touma..."

She took the blanket that Itsuwa previously gave to her, and with the touch of the blanket, her mind began wandering everywhere, forming a delusion of the knight saving a princess, as the thought of Kamijiou Touma waited for her to see her awakening touched her soft heart. The thought of Touma waited for her was something that she needed so much, showing the care that the spiky haired boy deeply had for her. With some moments of thinking, she took the blanket from her body, as she began leaving the cozy bed on which she lied on before, and approched Touma, wrapping the comfortable blanket to her, with a softened look on her face, as the gentleness that she did was far different than anything, blending a sense of affection, love, and sincerity. After that, after a small moment of smiling and little blushing, she was back in her bed, yawning loudly, being exhausted for anything that happened today. Then, she took another glance to her idiot hero, who was soundly asleep, and words began flowing from her mouth as her eyes were closed in exhaustion gracefully.

"Good night, dummy..."

The calm breeze suddenly entered the door, holding its warm atmosphere that appeared to be taken high from the heaven, enjoying the sight of the two teenagers who finally survived from the pit of death, bringing life to anyone around them.

* * *

><p>Ruiko Saten was having a good day after one hell of supplementary class, just until she got a call from her friends, Uiharu Kazari that her fellow member of Judgement and her senior, Misaka Mikoto were attacked by the member of Skill-Out and an awkward explosion which created catasthrope around the peripheral area occured. Behaving as a good friend just like she must do to anyone, together with loyalty and a sense of solidarity which was very needed by a single fighter, she took a step forward, changing her destination from her school dormitory to the hospital, with a great worry that began surrounding her usual cheerful disposition. What she had in mind was just to ensure the health and condition of the two friends that she had so much faith on, as she knew that despite their superiority in power, Uiharu said that they were injured badly, which meant that the culprit was really strong. Just thinking about that made Saten increased her amount of worry.<p>

At the moment, she was walking in the corridor of the hospital which was full of white hue and strolling nurses, with some of doctors rarely. Her steps was made to be as calm as possible, but her heart thumped so hard that she afraid it would be able to wake the other patients up. She was as worried as she could be, as the images of her two injured friends began crossing her mind. With her usual attire, the Sakugawa middle school uniform which had covered her body from the first time the sun was alive in the Academy City, she walked as fast and as calm as she could, disregarding any doctors and nurses who were jeering at her for her hasty manner. Her eyes, which were oh so black and pure, covered slightly by the bang from her long black hair, began surveying the rooms, trying to find the number of the room where her friends stayed.

As she eventually found the room with the door on which a paper with the name 'Shirai Kuroko' placed, she entered, and without a matter of seconds, finding her best friend, Uiharu Kazari, was sitting on a chair. Uiharu's eyes were directed to a lying girl which was snoring soundly, a sleeping figure of Shirai Kuroko. Bandage could be found on her cheeks, forehead, and arms, and Saten couldn't know how many more which were hidden beneath the blanket that covered her body. The calm aura of the white hospital room appeared to be oh so contrast with the appearance of Shirai Kuroko. It was as if they were differentiated with the words 'death' and 'life'.

Uiharu Kazari was wearing the same attire as Saten, the Sakugawa Middle School uniform. Her black hair, which was not even reach her shoulder, appeared to be so messy that it was enough to make Saten gasped in that sight. Her flower band was still taking its presence on her head, but it appeared to be as sad as her owner be. The worried expression that Uiharu had was far worse than Saten's as her face didn't show any happiness just in the time Saten looked at her. Nevertheless, finally, as though realizing the side of another friend that she needed the most, she looked at Saten with a sad expression, something which Saten hated to see.

"Welcome Saten-san. It is very nice for you to come," she said, showing her worried and sad tune that was too rare for Saten to hear, as if she was thrown in into an endless trench with the whisper of the devils, and she had no opportunity to escape, but whatever it was, she managed to give her a simple smile, as her lip began to curve to an angled line that seemed so fragile, being the only thing to reassure her.

"Of course I came, Uiharu," Saten said with a cheery tune which was very clear to be fake and made just for the reassurance of her friend. "How's her condition?" Saten asked, as her curiosity began building up in her mind.

"It was very horrible, Saten-san. Bruised body, swollen forehead, broken ribs and legs, severe cut on almost every part of her body. It appeared that the culprit of this commotion was nothing but a sadistic, cold mannered one," she said as she sighed in agony and sorrow, finding it hard to tell the condition of her dear friend, resisting an urge to cry in process, even though she did not want to be a cry baby which was always be her usual characteristic. "I will never want to imagine what would happen if that woman didn't bring her here," she continued painfully, as if the sentence was enough to deplete her remaining strength.

"A woman? Stranger?" Saten's frowned. It was very rare to see a kind and good stranger which appeared to began leaving the Academy City, let alone, facing an opponent who was as fierce as ever. "Who was she?"

"Oh, she was a beautiful woman with a purple hair with the same style as Misaka's," she said. "She was the one who took Shirai-san here, it was all because of her, Shirai-san could get better treatment, or else, I don't want to know," she continued, facing Saten with a expression that resembled a kid who lost her toys.

Saten smiled genuinely. The knowledge of hers for being in Academy City for more than a year had given her a sense, a belief, that most of the students in the city was not a caring one, whose ego won other than anything else. They usually would prioritize their life and safety more than anything, as something which was oh so precious for them, or maybe even laughed on the sight of a cornered person. It was not as though it was their fault, but rather, they indeed didn't have any much power that they needed the most. Nonetheless, this stranger, a woman too, helped someone, and moreover, her friend, protecting her from any further harm. The amount of people who had the same characteristic as this stranger in the Academy City could be counted by her fingers, just like Misaka Mikoto, one of her other friends.

Out of the blue, another thought of a certain scientific Railgun crossed her mind.

"Speaking of whom, where is Misaka-san?" Saten said, as another worry began constructing itself in her mind, even though the fact that Misaka was far stronger than Kuroko should be enough to reassure her, but still, she was worried. The reality that Misaka couldn't protect Kuroko could summarize two things. One: Misaka was too cruel, resulting her reluctance to protect her junior, and two: she was also injured that she couldn't help her. The first summary was so unlikely to happen, so the second summary must be the one.

"Oh, she was far better than her," she said giving a sweet smile of relief as she did so. "Her bandages were far less in number. She was also taken by another person, a spiky haired guy," she continued.

Saten frowned again for the second time. Another person? Just what had this Academy City been? She couldn't comprehend if there were two good people, who dared to face other's problem, stranger to be exact, in the same incident. It was not as though she was a pesimistic type, the one who thought about something from the negative side (in fact, Saten was the complete opposite), but it was somehow just strange. They must be the luckiest one in the world. But whatever it was, she began smiling, as the luck, the fortune, or whatever had happened, had just saved her friends that she cared of the most, the one whose tears she didn't really want to see, the one who had always been on her side until now, no matter what circumstances she had faced.

"So where's Misaka-san now?" Saten asked. If she were totally okay, then she didn't need to stay in this hospital right? Perhaps she could meet her and ask her about a thing or two about the accident that they had faced.

"Oh, she was taking a rest in the room just a few meters from here," Uiharu said. "But I'm afraid that you can't visit her. There were another person who was staying with her," she continued, and this time, somehow Saten could see a glimpse of an amused smile, something which was very rare to be seen from Uiharu, whose honesty and kindness could even surpass a charity worker, meant that something interesting had happened. Nevertheless, Saten wondered who was the person that stayed with her. As long as Saten could know, people that Misaka knew and had been her closest friend could be counted by fingers, and all of them were now in Kuroko's room. So who was this kind person? In the midst of calm breeze who entered the window, with the light from weak sun which gave a golden hue to the room, a phrase was flown from her mouth, joining Kuroko's snore in process.

"Another person?"

Uiharu's lip began to be curved, forming a Devil May Care grin that half population of Sakugawa Middle School found to be rare, whilst in the moment, Saten had sworn that she had seen Uiharu in another personality; not a usual shy Uiharu Kazari, but rather, Uiharu was just like her, Ruiko Saten.

"That spiky haired guy," Uiharu said. "I heard that he never leave Misaka-san's side."

* * *

><p>At one of the most crowded districts in Academy City; District 7, Aleister Crowley, the wickedest man in the world, the founder, leader, and general superintendent of Academy City, the one whose plan appeared to never fail, the one whose power even surpassed the board of directors, or any other name that you could call him, was still residing to his transparent tube which was filled with a great number of fluid, as he was placed upside down in it. He and his tube were protected by a certain massive building called 'Windowless Building', a building whose structure could even beat the defense of a tank, being the only building in the world that could resist even the most dangerous attack from anything. It was a white colored structure, soaring high to the sky above, with the change of outer appearance from the dawn to the dewfall, somehow creating an eerie feeling that was hard to be ignored, but also, hard to be detected. Despite of the windowless characteristic, the interior part was much chilly than the outer one, as the oxygen kept producing itself, promoting a life in the body of Aleister Crowley.<p>

With the usual lifeless expression that he always wore as a mask, Aleister stood upside down in a tube which was placed in the center of the quadruple space, being the only room which existed in the building; a room which was dominated by black and yellow color, together with the golden hue which materialized, as the only light source of the room. Numerous screens were present in the room, no matter it was at the top or the bottom, floating or sticking, the screens were everywhere, as if the room defied the law of gravity itself. But whatever it was, the screens were the only thing that could connect him to the outside world, as the tube resisted him from any further moving, forcing him to remain immobile.

Out of the blue, but even though it was a sudden thing, but still, within Aleister's prediction, a screen materialized in front of him, as his face didn't show any shock on it. Then, a figure of a man, with combed brown hair and beard, with the face that was oh so determined and brave; a face that could be only seen from someone who had managed to escape from death numerous times, appeared in front of Aleister's nose. The man was wearing a white T-shirt which was partially concealed by a black formal suit, not so fancy of fashionable, but it looked good in him. Aleister looked at him with his usual facial; a face which resembled a living corpse, so cold, yet oh so intelligent. Then, without waiting for the man to speak to him, Aleister greeted him, only for formality, not for anything else, as his mouth began to be opened.

"Misaka Tabikake, it is very rare for to connect with me, what's with the call?" he said, with his usual flat voice, but somehow, it could give chill to any child who wasn't prepare for it at all, something that had been Aleister's way of speaking for only God knew since when.

The man, Misaka Tabikake, faced the general superintendent of Academy City with the same facial that he always had to anyone, ignoring the fact that here, just right in front of him, limited by the perennial smooth screen, standing (upside down) the once greatest magician in the world, the one who could kill him within a fraction of seconds. He appeared to be somehow furious, even though it was hidden beneath his calm and phlegm disposition, but everyone could know, by the way he looked at Aleister, the man was not in his good mood.

"Cut the courtesy, Aleister Crowley," Tabikake said, with the calmest tune which appeared to be hard to be released in his current state, and it was very great of him for not shouting at Aleister at that moment, but whether it was for the sense of politeness or anything, nobody would ever know. "I heard that my daughter must stay in the hospital, and I believed it was not because of sickness or something usual," he continued.

Aleister looked at him with a pitying look, as though he felt sorry for Tabikake for being worried about his daughter too much, but at least, it was something written on his face; nobody could ever know what was in Aleister's mind. "Ah, yeah, your daughter… Misaka Mikoto, right?" he asked, as though he didn't know about the relationship between Mikoto and Tabikake.

"Your sense of humor always amused me, Crowley," Tabikake said, clearly pissed and fed up by Aleister's reply, showed by the sudden pressure that he gave to the last two syllables. "I bet that you would know that Mikoto was my daughter even though I didn't inherit the name Misaka to her," he resumed his sentence.

"That's perfectly true, Tabikake," Aleister said, fully teasing the father of the Railgun, with a manner that could even piss a priest off. "And how could you know that your daughter must stay in a hospital?" he said, asking, not as a part of his curiosity, because he had known the answer, but rather, for more about formality and avoiding.

"My wife told me just now," Tabikake said, as he appeared to be very eager to stop the stupid talk that began blowing his mind, frustrating it as his hasty needs were more than essential for him. "I didn't need more joking or courtesy from you, Aleister. Since when did you become a jerk? Since you were born from your mother's womb?" Tabikake snorted, humiliating him in order to bring the topic back to the usual one. "Care to explain?"

"Ah your wife, Misaka Misuzu," Aleister said, fully ignoring the way Tabikake mocked him. "She is as beautiful as the last time I saw her, I presume?" he said, still with his usual facial as his tune was as chilly as the interior temperature of the room.

"Explain. It. To. Me," Tabikake said, not wanting to be further swallowed by Aleister's further stupid talk, which was very unbecoming of him. He gave each word the pressure that he could give, as if it was something that resisted his urge to shout at him, the proof of pique as his important problem which was related to his family was in the verge of being forgotten. Tabikake didn't want it to happen, because his family was far more essential than his own neck.

Silence began spreading around the perimeter, filling the room with uncomfortable aura as the two men began shooting dagger at each other, as though they were trying to defeat each other in a glaring contest. The sound of water bubble was the only one which showed its presence, together with numerous other that followed it in Aleister's tube, creating a harmony, somehow a heart thumping one, as the water bubbles were the only thing that could even invent a sound in the room which was full of tense and suspense, keeping the pressure as the two men glared at each other.

"What do you want to know?" Aleister said coldly, as his tune transformed from a teasing, somehow stupid one, being the last thing that Tabikake wanted to hear. "You shouldn't worry about it at all, you should know that," he continued.

"I believed that though I asked you what happened to her, you would lie, Aleister," Tabikake said. "Your sense of honesty took the lowest grade in my dictionary, if you would like to know. So, this time, I just take my chance to tell you. If you say I don't have to worry about it, then fine; after all, I can't trust what you say in the first place. But there's one thing you need to keep in mind: if you do anything to my wife or daughter, what do you think will happen once I find out? Do you know what it means to make an enemy of a mere father? Think about those things," he said fluently, reciting his own fear and threat to him, as he believed that he would never give up in making his family happy.

Aleister just smirked for the first time, and somehow, Tabikake could sense that his call was nothing but another thing that Aleister would always forget. "You must destroy this building and destroy my tube if that were what you really want, Tabikake. If that were what you want to say, then fine, I will bid you farewell."

And the screen was gone in front of Aleister, leaving nothing but vacant space in front of him, as he resumed his activity of watching the important activity that he had done for a long time.

* * *

><p>Three hours, including four trains changing and a hundred meters of walking, were the amount of time that showed a great distance between the university which Misaka Misuzu studied in and the hospital which her daughter, Misaka Mikoto, stayed in. Despite of the difference in distance, once Misuzu received a call which informed that her daughter was injured, she treated it with any hastiness that she had, with the blinding velocity that could only be seen from a mother and a daughter, showing a great bond between the members of Misaka family. Being a good mother she was, it was no longer a need, but rather, an emergency, as Misuzu's priority was nothing but the sake of her daughter, Misaka Mikoto, as the one whose life was something that she was concerned about, and thinking about her fighting the danger by herself was something that she hated. It was not as though she didn't admit the superior power that she had, but whatever it was, Misuzu Misaka was a mother, and even though Mikoto was known as the Railgun; the Ace of Tokiwadai, or whatever it was, she was still her fragile daughter who needed so many education before she was released to the trial and tribulation that the world had.<p>

And for you to know, Misuzu Misaka never thought that Mikoto was prepared for that.

Misuzu Misaka finally reached the hospital, and now, she was running in the corridor which seemed to be endless, as her mind didn't stop thinking about the daughter who inherited her outer appearance. Her mind didn't stop concerning about her, with countless images of Mikoto's face began forming in her brain one by one, from the good memory to bad, from the time when she was smiling wildly to the time when she was crying like a baby, from the time when she was mad at her to the time when she hugged her with the proximity that could only be felt by the close relationship within mother and daughter. She dashed along the white corridor, with the loud steps that didn't cease sounding, disregarding the fact that she was in the hospital, and there were so many populations in the hospital, whether it was doctor, or nurse, or the other patients, who were glaring at her, simply annoyed by the noises that she caused. Nevertheless, whatever it was, she didn't care, as the flashing images in her mind didn't stop, causing her to grit her teeth in remorse for not being able to protect her. Just what kind of mother she was? What kind of mother would allow her daughter to lie on the dirty concrete with no protection, and even now, must stay in the hospital?

She felt as though she was the most useless in the world. She could do nothing but hoping for the survival of her only daughter, putting the greatest faith to Mikoto's friends that should be able to protect her, but until now, she couldn't stop thinking about what happened when they failed, what happened when they didn't succeed in guarding her way to adulthood. She didn't want to imagine that, she couldn't, and in fact, she would never try to imagine herself if that were happening.

Eventually, she found the room where Misaka Mikoto stayed, after so much running as though it was for eternity, as she finally realized that sweat had drenched her body, which was covered by her usual white clothes and blue jeans. Her brown hair was becoming hot because of the long-time run which had drained her power. Without any further care about anything, she opened the door with excessive power that she shouldn't do, and entered the room without any permission, but what was waiting for her inside the room was so different than the thought that crossed her mind since the last five minutes.

There, displayed in a room that wasn't oh so isolated, together with the blend of weak sun that penetrated the floor with its perennial seraph which seemed to be peaceful, the presence of her daughter and a certain spiky haired guy could be seen. They were both sleeping, oh so peacefully as though the incident yesterday didn't affect them, as they were ready to be painted by Leonardo Da Vinci himself. It was a breath taking and heart melting one, a kind of scene that would always make people smile in calm expression, seeing the two people held their silent vigil as the nature united them as one. In the midst of horrible incident yesterday, the two seemed to be happy, as they would eventually see each other's face with a broad smile, adorning their lips with nothing but bliss.

Misuzu smiled at the sight of the two, closing her hazel eyes which became Mikoto's devisee, with the curved of satisfaction smile that decorated her face. Her eyes took the sight of her own daughter, and she swore that she rarely saw Mikoto in that expression since her childhood, a kind of smile which expressed full gratitude and joy, which could only be got from someone who had taken everything around her in success. Their snoring appeared to be perfectly matched, gathering some amount of reluctances in Misuzu's brain.

But one of them indeed woke up.

The sharp black eyes of Kamijiou Touma fluttered open slowly, but still, whatever speed it had, it was enough to signal his awakening. He yawned loudly with the sound which could resemble the moaning of a bear, bringing another difference of voice in the room's space, and stretched his arms upwards. His hair appeared to be messy, and some amount of tear could be seen from his eyes, showing the good sleep that he had experienced. His hand rubbed his eyes slowly, and his vision began spreading as his head looked at all the corners of the room, finding another individual that he knew, standing in the room.

"Ah, you are Misaka Misuzu, right?" he asked Misuzu, still in his current sitting state. Then, he finally realized that it was not polite for him to do so, and stood up from his previous state, giving her a greeting as he scratched his head a little; a good hint of embarrassment. "Visiting Misaka-san?" he continued.

"Of course I am, Kamijiou-san," Misuzu replied with a grin that expressed her usual cheerful character, somehow lightening the atmosphere in the room, making it more cheerful. It was a magic from Misaka Misuzu to gladden the aura around her circumstances, no matter who resided in it. Let alone, her young appearance made her easier to do it.

"How's Mikoto-chan?" Misuzu asked, thoroughly curious and concerned about the state of her daughter, not allowing Touma to say anything. Perhaps, it appeared that Mikoto was in a good state, but, who knew? Don't judge the book from its cover, right?

Touma smiled. "She was okay, only a little bruise on her forehead, but aside of that, she was fine, maybe just a little bit exhausted," Touma said, still with a smile that had adorned his face. He looked at the railgun who was sleeping soundly with the most innocent face that she had, and no matter how many times Touma would deny it, she appeared somehow cute in her current state.

Misaka smiled knowingly, being clearly relieved as her daughter was just taken a slight bruise and nothing at all. Knowing Mikoto, she would treat her wound as if there was nothing on her forehead, maybe even hitting it to the wall to ensure its health. Nevertheless, what she head was that the explosion occurred, an explosion that was of so strong that it could even cause a massive blackout. If Mikoto didn't get so much injury, then…

"You don't look okay by yourself. Are you hurt?" Misuzu asked to Touma, who faced her as a reply, managing another grin on his face. She observed Touma's state, which apparently bad enough with the comparison to her daughter's. "You look… terrible."

"I'm perfectly okay with it!" Touma answered, even though it was not so convincing. "Look, it is perfectly fine!" Touma continued, moving his arm, punching and making a fist, trying to ensure his condition to the female that looked at him worriedly. But it was not so fine, as Touma could feel a jerk of pain in his arm, making him to take his words and arm back and massaging it in pain.

"You sure are not okay," Misuzu said knowingly.

"Such misfortune," Touma answered.

Silence began covering the two of them; with the snoring sound from Mikoto's throat as the only one that surrounded them. The two individuals in the room looked at Mikoto dearly, as the one who became the center of these entire incidents, and right now, the center of the attention. Her chest moved up and down very normally, as though she slept without acknowledging the presence of incident before, but somehow, it was heart melting to see, making the two deliberately smiled in an amused manner, looking at Mikoto who slept with the equivalence of a kitten.

"I'm very worried about her."

Misaka Misuzu, unbeknownst to even her, began speaking, expressing her concern for her daughter just in five essential words. Even though her voice was not so audible, but Touma managed to hear it, making his head moved towards Misuzu's direction. Touma could see the eyes of concern and worry began filling her face, with her usual cheerful appearance became so contrast with her current facial. Touma frowned a little bit, but he stayed silent, letting the mother to continue her monologue speech.

"She is so strong, yet so fragile, an emotion which appeared to be uncontrollable, a girl who still needs so much direction and education from adult and her friends, someone whose recklessness can create a mess. I am really tempted to bring her back home," Misuzu said.

Touma frowned as his forehead began forming a small wrinkle; not because of the old age, but because of his confused state. Touma knew that Misuzu wanted to bring Mikoto back from Academy City, but she said that she wouldn't do it anymore. Nonetheless, Touma didn't know that she still thought about it.

"What do you think, Kamijiou-san?" she asked Touma with a face full with agony, something that could only be seen from someone who was concerned greatly about someone he or she loved.

Actually, Kamijiou Touma didn't know what to say. He believed that his decision about Mikoto Misaka was not so essential. But, seeing the expression that Misuzu wore, he must say, that right now, his opinion about the best thing for Misaka was something that could even change her fate and destination, as the mother of hers in front of her seemed to be very frustrated, or maybe puzzled for the best decision that she should make as a mother. And so, following his ideal, he must give the best answer that he could, helping the person in front of him.

"I don't think you should," Touma said, finally making a decision. "Almost all her life was spent here; this was maybe the only place where she can be accepted. A place where she can be herself," Touma said, with the gentlest tune that he could release, trying to convey his opinion about the problem.

Misuzu's lowered gaze, not looking defeated, but rather, another bitter smile could be seen. Perhaps it wasn't something that she wanted, but she appeared to know, that Touma was right in any case. Academy City indeed was a place where Mikoto could feel so many experiences about happiness and joy, grief and sorrow, love and hatred, being the only place for her to have the mix of emotions, eventually led her to a strong individual that Misuzu would always hope from her.

"That's true," Misuzu said, replying, not allowing herself to look at Touma. "But in case anything happened to her, would you like to help her?" she said pleadingly.

In return, Touma faced the sun which began to set, with the beauty of the landmark which could never be beaten by anyone, coloring the environment with reddish hue which was oh so impressive to be seen, guarding the color with its persistence in shining, being a good example of God's creation in the world. His eyes looked at the setting sun with a serene expression, enjoying its warmth it provided, as though it could help him answering the question that Misuzu asked. But whatever it was, he had known the answer, something that he had repeated for countless time in the world, and it never changed.

"I will protect her, even though it is the last thing that I can do."

And Misaka Misuzu smiled, giving her utmost smile that beautified her face, thoroughly acknowledging that her daughter would not be hurt anymore, as her guardian angel descended from heaven, in the embodiment of Kamijiou Touma.


	3. Warlock

**_Guy, here comes the new chapter. I apologized for the lack of Mikoto-Touma's scene here, but this chapter is the turning point of another chapter, so please mind me!_**

**_Oh, right! I'm not quite sure whether this chapter is good enough for you readers or not, but please review!  
><em>**

**Chapter 3: ****Warlock**

Being loyal to the ideals and principles were not things that you could do just by sitting comfortably on your sofa, stretching your legs as you gained abundant enjoyment from the hot chocolate that you took a sip before. Ideals and principles needed so much care and treatment, being more fragile and easily shaken just like a broken glass, with the materials that were simple to be shattered by any direct impact from the surrounding, or from the world itself. Nonetheless, despite of the state of being vulnerable, there were always someone who eventually could gather their strength to protect their ideals. They were the one who could smile in trouble, who could collect strength from distress, and grew brave by reflection. It was the business of little minds to shrink, but those whose heart was firm, and whose conscience approved their conduct, would invariably pursue their principles and ideals unto death. Strong men didn't compromise, it was said, and ideals and principles should never be compromised, being the manifestation of any experiences and impressions that had been carved from the first time they stepped in the world, as they grew with them, and made friends with them, being the only comrades for them to face the reality of the time and space nowadays.

From a milion people in this world, the number of individuals who finally succeeded in maintaining their own principles and ideals, ignoring any other sense of dignity and prosperity that they could have, could be counted just by the number of fingers in your left hand. It was not as though that the number of strong hearted and stell minded people in the world had decreased that drastically, nevertheless, it was more because of the need and importance of their life, as being loyal to your ideals was not so different than offering your head to a hungry lion. Nonetheless, Kamijiou Touma was one of the people who succeeded, with the face which vaguely showed that his sense of loyalty to his ideals could even defeat a wife's loyalty to their husband, creating and forming the Kamijiou Touma that was not easily directed and manipulated, a splendid example of a figure of an impressive person.

In fact, his principle was very simple and modest, but also, requiring a great amount of strength, courage, sincerity, knowledge, light, and hope for being able to maintain it in his heart. 'Protecting the smile and happiness of others'. Just because of the sentence which couldn't be considered as a phrase, he went through all the problems that were originally faced by other people, sacrificing sweat, power, blood, and even his own mental state. But he eventually solved it with other coureagous smile that adorned his face, as satisfactory flooded him with so much pride and joy, for being able to guard the virginity of his principle.

The only actual ability, the only blessing that was given by God from his youth, was just his right hand, the Imagine Breaker, that ironically, kept him not to be blessed anymore by the highest entity himself, as though His blessing for that power was so great that He didn't need to give anymore blessing. It was an oh so great, yet oh so cursing, just like two sides of coin which concealed the true meaning of something, being the power that could descend all the illusions to its own originality, negating all the powers and abilities that people should have. But yet, even though the fact that Imagine Breaker was there, he shouldn't be able to face all the problems and troubles by himself, but nonetheless, he faced all of them anyway, as his principle was the one that had most of his attention, being the first priority for him from his youth.

And he knew, that even though he didn't have the Imagine Breaker, even though he didn't have any ability that could support him, he would do the same thing as he did, because he didn't care about anything else other than the joy of those who were present around him. He was that kind of stupid man, who would throw himself to other's problem with a determined face, even though he didn't know whether he would survive or not.

He didn't know it, he didn't acknowledge it, and in fact, he didn't care about it. Nevertheless, the number of people that he had actually saved had reached the number that could pass the population of Academy City itself, let alone the number of sacrifice that he had done, making him as one of the honorary member of the hospital, with the frog faced doctor as his private doctor. Nonetheless, his might in guarding his ideal could even surpass every trial and tribulation that seemed to never cease to try destroying it, and the shattered illusion with his right hand was the proof of it. After the problem had been solved, he would treat it as if there was nothing happened, simply forgetting it, even though he wasn't known and recognized in the problem despite of the major involvement that he had done. He would say that fame was not important, and the thought that everyone was finally happy in the end was more than enough for him.

He was that kind idiot guy.

The said guy was now walking in the corridor of the hospital, which was renowned by its white hue, passing several nurses and doctors as he walked with the usual bored expression on his face. It was another morning, as the light that the world had provided had relieved the night from yesterday, giving its hue to the world that habitually activated people's mind to began their works and studies. It was the same with Touma, after a long day in Mikoto Misaka's room, he eventually left it, with Misaka's statement that she would be okay. Nevertheless, Touma was not so sure himself, because of the fact that she said it with a reddish hue on her face, which in Touma's thought, she could have a fever. But after some moments of arguing and debating, with a little bit bottle throwing, that could wake most of the patients up in the hospital, Touma was finally convinced to leave Mikoto by herself, a little bit relieved that at least she could have adequate energy to throw a bottle.

His face, even though it looked so bored and flat, had a mix of glee and relief on it, as the thought of nice condition of the hazel eyed girl was more than enough for him, in fact, he worried about her condition so much, and actually, he had never felt something like that before. It was as if the mind of the condition of the brown haired girl had created another certain thought in his brain, and he embraced it anyway. Nevertheless, the thought of Misaka Mikoto was not the only thing that he must have a spot on, as his brain's attention began dividing itself, because the only thing that he thought to be important was not only that.

Moreover, something that Misaka Misuzu requested to him just a moment before she left.

Whatever it was, the need of food supply, another priority for him, was something that called him to go to the hospital's cafetaria this morning, with another intention that had been compactly structured in a tiny part of his brain. Enjoying the scenery of the rising sun with a company of a nice looking and a delicious one sandwich, maybe with vanilla milkshake or moccacino were a dreamy sight in his mind, as his sinful stomach was growling heavily; the proof of the emptiness of his stomach. He indeed hadn't eaten much yesterday, but he couldn't help it. For heaven's sake, how could a person eat when the other's condition was not so sure? He just ate a cheesburger that Itsuwa bought for him yesterday, and nothing else.

His hair was still as messy as yesterday, showing the lack of attention in taking a bath or maintaining his own sanity, as the thought of a certain scientific Railgun kept flooding him for eternity, not because of any essential or self-centered bussiness, but rather, because of the fact that she was someone that he knew and he cared, just because of that. His black jacket and T-shirt were still remained unchanged from yesterday's, and to be honest, he was as tired as he could be, with a little bag under his eyes, yawning loudly, giving a good example of someone who was caught in insomnia, and his bored expression was just like a withered flower which was trapped in a place where the sky was never blue.

The crowds and loud noises from the window which was present beside him caught his attention, swiftly changed his head's direction to the view of the outside world. It was another magnificent dawn. The sun gave its own blessing to the world as the people began having their life in the city, filling every corner of the city with their breath and aura, creating an unproportional and perplexing atmosphere in various places. The park which was built just in front of the hospital was colored by the hue of the sun, and the shadow of perennial trees began giving other color to the ground beneath them. The chirpings birds, especially pigeons, began filling the space which appeared to be provided just for them, busying themselves with bliss and joy, starting to find any food that could be provided in the park, inhaling a sufficient amount of air which brought a nice odor from the mother nature. It was an usual morning, but Kamijiou Touma never got bored of it.

His eyes narrowed slightly as his brain interpreted a sight of a certain purple haired girl, which was sitting oh so gracefully on one of the bench in the park, shadowed by an eternal oak tree which guarded her from the sunlight from above, oh so elegantly that it almost demanded the passerby's look at it. It was a figure of a girl that everyone would always dream of: slender body with strong legs, flawless skin and proportional height, accompanied by beautiful face and kind eyes. It was someone that he knew, being an individual that stayed in his home until now. It was also someone that he considered as other friend, and also, she was the one that took a role as his guardian.

Ignoring the fact that Kamijiou Touma was someone that could be considered as one of the most insensitive person in the world, nonetheless, he could tell that something was wrong with her, as her eyes looked very dreamy, looking at something which was far from anything. It was as though she was caught in her own attention of something, being ignorant of the fact that beautiful scenery was trying to cheer her up. Her particular smile was nowhere to be seen, and she appeared to be deep in her own thought.

And Kamijiou Touma, being a chivalrous person just like what he would always be, decided to join her, forgetting the intention of enjoying breakfast in the hospital's cafetaria, as the thought of the purple haired girl which was sitting on the bench alone, without so many company except the eternal sun which seemed unstoppable, overwhelmed his mind with the equivalence of nothing.

He would always be that kind of man.

* * *

><p>Being a follower of Jesus Christ meant that someone was ready to serve Him, to do His orders and to spread His words to eveyone in the world. Nevertheless, it was not as easy as that, because being something like that was the same with cleansing yourself from any evils and sins, being a member of the church, and for the most important thing; being the Children of God, those who had the image of God. Being a member of a certain church from youth meant that someone was trained to avoid any kind of irritation and bad thinking about others, avoiding any hint of jealousy and worldly intention that sinked someone into an endless sin. He or she would always hate the sin itself, as the one which distanced himself or herself from the mighty God. It was an obligation, not only an unspoken rule or a constitution, but a law for any Children of God.<p>

Nevertheless, human was not God, human couldn't be perfectly cleansed from overwhelming sin that had developed sharper and sharper in this wicked world, as ego, being the number one sin, something that blocked any good deeds and kind intentions, would always be right there in the heart, no matter how white someone was. No matter what circumstances someone was in, sin would always surround them, and what they would do was just avoiding and preventing themselves from doing any of it. The bitterness of sin would always haunt someone, whispering any mischief and crime, being something that was more tricky than a magicians themseves, bringing someone down to endless regret, and even bereavement in the end. It was not only a usual ability or power, but also, an absolutility.

Perhaps, it was something that Itsuwa had in her mind. In spite of the fact that she had entered the Amakusa church from her youth, but she couldn't stop this tingling and wicked feeling that she had only recognized that time. It was a feeling of being unhappy and even angry because someone had something or someone you wanted, or because you thought they might take someone that you dearly loved away from you. It was worse than envy, it was harder to be defeated rather than being possessive. It was jealousy, as something that would make her eyes became full of fire from the hell, as the demonic flame began consuming all of her mental state, creating bitter delusion that would affect her behavior, being something which was more criminal than the devil itself. Whatever it was, whatever every definition and explanation that anyone could throw into, Itsuwa was jealous.

Specifically, she was jealous to Mikoto Misaka.

It was hilarious, one could say, as actually being the member of the church from her youth and even had enough bravery to protect the essence of the church could make someone to have a certain immunity from that kind of thing; in fact, she couldn't. The sight of her loved one, Kamijiou Touma, cared deeply abouy a girl she didn't know was something irresistible, but surely, not in a good way. It was the sight that she really hated, as a feeling of being defeated began taking her mind with bitter draft, with a certain dislikeness covered the light that surrounded her, changing it with an eternal darkness. Indeed, Itsuwa never showed it to anyone, even when she faced Mikoto. She still gave her the broadest smile that she had, being something that was famous from her. Nevertheless, it was so hard to do, so irritating to be done, requiring so much amount of energy from her body, and she was still defeated.

Her serene aura and figure gave her more than enough to resist the jealousy that overwhelmed her mind though, as the blessing from the God for that kind of character had saved her from being to aggressive or anything. She was very happy that God had given that disposition, being calm and kind toward anything and all. If she didn't have it, she wouldn't want to know what would happen.

But whatever it was, whatever any blessing that had been given by the God to her, she wasn't happy at all.

She was sitting on a bench in the park, in one of the corners that the park invisibly provided. It was a good place, so cool for her skin and so healthy, coloring the environment with comfortable aura which was rare to be found in the Academy City. The oak tree protected her sitting figure from the sunlight, with a little occasional light that succeeded to penetrate the leaves of the tree, giving a mix of heat and warmth in Itsuwa's skin. The oak tree gave a certain refreshing odor to her mind, wings to brain, and also, being a good change from the smell of drugs and medicines in the hospital. It was a good place to think, to be alone, to process everthing in a calm state, to be herself.

She sighed, releasing a certain amount of vapor to the air which was so unbecoming of herself. Her eyes spotted the clear azure sky which appeared to be so wonderful and breath taking, finding it interesting for a slight of second. Then, without her knowing why, without her acknowledging the reason why she did it, she closed her eyes, as words began flowing from her mouth.

"What am I supposed to do?" she said, whispering to herself in confusion. "Must I... ah!"

Her calm whisper was naturally changed into a shriek when suddenly, something which was oh so cold touched and was pushed into her cheek, giving shiver of both surprise and chill to her skin, as her skin sent a stimulation of chill to her brain in a split of second. Without any direct order from her brain, she rubbed her cheek, massaging it to somehow calm her shocked skin. Being a calm individual that she had perfected from her childhood, she didn't shout back or even scold anyone who had done that kind of silly thing, but rather, she turned her head to find who the culprit was. Afterwards, she found it hard to resist an urge to blush, as her eyes caught a glimpse of the culprit who were smiling at her, with two cans of soft drink in his hands and a plastic bag of sandwiches which was hung loosely on his wrist.

"Ka-ka-Kamijiou-san!" Itsuwa said, with a reddened cheek, a clear proof that her brain and her feeling had changed, becoming excited or maybe slightly embarrased. The blood who was flowing to her cheek appeared to be so mischievous, turning her head into a giant fresh tomato which seemed to be newly picked from the best plantation. The voice that she had released was no different than a squeak of a mouse, being thoroughly surprised for the appearance of a certain spiky haired boy.

"Yo! Having good view in the morning here?" Touma said, with a little joyful smile adorned his face, looking at her with and extremely happy and blissful expression which could actually be understood by his simpe grin. Somehow, Touma's aura began surrounding Itsuwa's, as her heart stopped thumping because of the previous surprise. It was calmed down somehow, as though the smile from Kamijiou Touma had given light and hope for it to carry on, giving a pathway to stay normal, to feel a tranquil atmosphere that surrounded the space itself.

"Ah, it's not like that," Itsuwa said, finding it easier and easier to talk and began the conversation, as Touma's smile began giving another kind of serenity to her voice box to do its role, creating the particular, not a peculiar tune, which she always did. "I am just... thinking. That's all," she continued.

"Too much thinking will eventually give you a headache, Itsuwa," Touma said, moving his body to sit beside her on the bench to get the shadow of the oak tree, finding it very enjoyable to sit as another breeze began picking up, fully revealing itself from its concealment and gave a certain softness to his skin. "Here, I brought a sandwich and juice for you. Take them and have some!" he said again, checking the plastic bag, took a sandwich from it and gave it to Itsuwa.

"Ah, thank you so much," Itsuwa said, smiling as finally her mind had enough bravery to do so. She took the sandwich from his hand and looked at it quietly. It was a nice and delicious looking sandwich, with the size that was very suitable for her portion. It appeared that the sandwich had been made so specifically and nicely that it almost demanded all of her emotion for not to chew it greedily. She was indeed very hungry, because her breakfast was neglected by her, changed it with thinking beneath the oak tree, something that couldn't even fill her stomach. Let alone, the sandwich seemed so yummy and expensive, that even she didn't know whether Kamijiou Touma really bought it for her or just stole it. Well, the second one was probably a false though.

The silence began covering them, filling the atmosphere with quite draft as the two chewed their breakfast silently, filling their stomach as they enjoyed the delicacy of the meal that Touma had bought. The nice smell of sandwiches began joining the odor that the mother nature had naturally created, giving a proportional smell between them, making the breeze became more and more enjoyable. Whatever it was, they ate their meal idly as though they didn't realize the existence of each other just beside them, but the scene of the two seemed to be perfectly fit, with the company of perennial oak tree behind and two pigeons that perched on the bench to take a rest, a good composition of human and nature, to be exact. The pigeons chirped joyfully, creating music and melody to everybody's ears, the proof that they enjoyed the togetherness that the two people had provided so much, and they seemed really eager to be there until the two went, leaving nothing but the bench beneath a sacred oak tree.

"Kamijiou-san, why did you care about her so much?"

That sentence accidentally slipped from Itsuwa's tongue, breaking the ice that the two of them had created, even though the voice that the violet haired girl had produced was oh so inaudible as if she didn't really want to say it. It was something that she thought about from the morning, something that she was so curious at. It was also something that created a tingling feeling in her chest, something that caused a certain kind of soft jealousy on the surface of her brain. To be honest, she didn't really want to talk about it because she knew, that it would make her appeared stupid and even worse than it, would show a hint of jealousy that she had concealed perfectly since two days ago with the mask of serenity that decorated her face. It was very shocking to see her mouth began speaking by itself, not receiving any order from her brain, as though her mouth had betrayed her hard, and maybe, even brought her to another circumstances and experiences that she really didn't want to be involved. Tongue and mouth really were dangerous things.

Despite of the inaudible characteristic, Touma Kamijiou heard it nonetheless, as his eyes reacted by directing themselves to Itsuwa's face. It was not as if his hearing was oh so good that he could even defeat the ability of a dog, but rather, it was because of the fact that Itsuwa's voice that time was so unusual that he couldn't recognize it so clear, making him to react in just a split of second in confusion. Her voice sounded unusually shy, and Touma was thoroughly confused by that fact. It was as if she had really something that annoyed her and it could be written in her last sentence.

"Her?" Touma said, while chewing calmly, being really confused by the sudden question of the girl that had been his guardian for maybe two weeks. On the other hand, Itsuwa really hoped that Touma didn't hear her mumbling. It was very embarassing, as her shyness began overwhelming them like crazy, and for an instance, making her regreted to have a mouth that couldn't be used effectively. She stopped eating for a fraction of second, thinking again for a good decision whether to carry on the conversation or just to say 'nothing' and stopped it. Therefore, after thinking so hard that could even make one's brain began melting, with the oh so brave decision she had made, she began speaking, being the embodiment of decision that she had made.

"Yea... that brown haired girl... why did you care about her so much?"

Touma didn't answer her swiftly, somehow gave a certain kind of shiver to Itsuwa's skin as she started imagining something that she really didn't want to hear. Nevertheless, Touma finished his meal, wrapping the plastic that had been its covering since the first time the sandwich left the factory, and looking at the sky upwards which was oh so blue and oh so peaceful, the reflection of his own face.

"Do I need a reason?"

Touma's words penetrated Itsuwa's ears and made her head to react, facing Touma's face, finding him looking at the sky with closed eyes and tranquil expression. It was something, an answer that Itsuwa never expected. She had analyzed the probability of Touma's words and began filling it with with negative thought, being the only things that made her reluctant to hear Touma's answer. It was not as if she was the most pessimistic person in the world, but she felt that being optimistic was out of the option that time. Nevertheless, Touma's answer destroyed it all, leaving her in a confused state as none of her prediction was right. She had been surprised countless time in this morning by an unpredictable guy called Kamijiou Touma, really.

Touma then opened his eyes as though he had got a certain revelation from the sun itself, treating it with the equivalence of a prophet who had got a word from the mighty God from the heaven above. Swiftly, he approached Itsuwa's face with a proximity that could make her fainted without realizing it. He touched her forehead by his forefinger with a kind of gentleness that could only be sensed from a bride in the wedding hall, blessing him with every thought that he had, as he looked at Itsuwa with a devil may care smirk that Itsuwa found heart stopping. Then, he began speaking again, oh so calmly and full of harmony, or at least it was what Itsuwa had in her mind

"I don't really know the reason why someone ignored and clashed each other..." Touma said honestly, with a smile still implanted on his face. It was a smile that would make someone to close their eyes without they knew why, as though they talked to themselves, or maybe, they felt certain warmth that the words had provided. His smiles grew wider and wider, defeating the sleepy look that had been plastered on his face from the morning, giving bewilderment, and yet, optimistic reflection to Itsuwa's ears. "… But to help and care about one another… do I need a logical reason?"

Itsuwa's eyes began dilating as the words that Touma had said finally reached her ears, giving a shocked expression on her face which still was mixed by her calm figure proportionally. The spiky haired boy's words were so true, genuine, and indigenous, giving an impression of his life, his time, his principles, his ideas, and his style. It was also something that everybody should know, for their existence in the world was only for the purpose of happiness of others. Nevertheless, Itsuwa's intellection couldn't reach his way of thinking, and Touma's words were more than enough for her to realize everything. Yes, to make someone happy, to care about someone, to help someone. Right now, that brown haired middle school girl was the one who needed support and prodding, someone who needed as many embrace as she needed, someone who needed care and concern from everyone, not her. Kamijiou Touma, no matter how stupid he was, no matter the fact that he was one of the most idiots in his class, could know that without anyone to tell him. Why couldn't she?

What she thought about until that time was only about a logical reason; a logical reason why he cared about her so much; that was to say, because he loved her with no equivalence in this world. Logic was the thing that made her thought like that, and because of that, she was wrong. An old once said that a civilization was a heritage of beliefs, customs, and knowledge slowly accumulated in the course of centuries, elements difficult at times to justify by logic, but justifying themselves as paths when they led somewhere, since they open up for man his inner distance. He was just like that. He was the heritage of his own style, his own way of thinking, his own truth, his own ideals, with elements that were hard to be justified by logic. Nevertheless, his illogical being would always lead him to something that he believed, and he didn't need any logical reason for that.

But Itsuwa could have sworn with her own life, that the only one who could think like that was only Kamijiou Touma.

Her eyes closed, genuinely pleased by the realization that had enveloped herself with certain cheeriness. His own truth, his realization didn't struck her just like a hammer which seemed painful, but rather, it was just like mother's embrace that would eventually gave you a warmth that she would always wish, one of the reason why she accepted it without any argument.

On the other side, Touma opened the juice can that appeared to be uncared for a slight of moment, and without him alarmed to the situation he would be in, the can appeared to hate him so much, spurting enormous amount of soda inside it, drenching his face in just a split of second, choking in process, because the contact of the soda with his breathing system was so disturbing. Really, he was sleepy, but why must he accept that kind of punishment for being like that? He closed his eyes momentarily, looking defeated as the misfortune began surrounding him, not giving him any chance to take a rest from it.

"Such misfortune," he said, as his catchphrase seemed to be the only thing that could describe his own situation, and it was right. Really, he was just saying something cool to the individual beside him, and after that, he was drenching heavily by the punishment from the soda can, and the cool characteristic began depleting just in the sight of that. He really wished to find the fortunate things around all the unfortunate things, but he couldn't.

Itsuwa smirked a little at this sight, fully amused by the current misfortune that appeared to overwhelm the body of Kamijiou Touma for eternity. She gently took a handkerchief from her pocket, and gave it to Touma, as the only thing that actually she could do to help him.

"Here, wipe your face with this," the purple haired girl said, offering her handkerchief to Touma. "Your face would be sticky if you didn't clean it fast," she continued, with another gentle tune that colored the atmosphere.

"Thanks Itsuwa," Touma said nonchalantly, taking the handkerchief from Itsuwa's hand and used it to clean his face. Suddenly, as if the lightning had pounced him with a million volts, a realization hit his brain, as his mind began remembering Misaka Misuzu's request to him, a request which was oh so simple, but yet, hard to be disregarded, and his decision would beckon his departure, his future life, even though maybe just momentarily.

"Ah, speaking of Misaka, I need to tell you something," Touma said, handing the handkerchief back to Itsuwa, and began scratching his head, finding it hard to tell the purple haired girl the request from the mother of a certain scientific Railgun.

"Yes?" Itsuwa said, taking the handkerchief from his hand and returned it to her pocket. She tilted her head a little with a bit confused tune in her voice, as the sudden change of topic left her astonished, giving her a touch of curiosity to her brain.

"Well…"

* * *

><p>"What? No way!"<p>

The voice convulsed the hospital as if it was just a building that was structured by a child, throbbing it hard as the voice of a certain scientific Railgun appeared to echo everywhere, leaving all the patients perplexed and annoyed, starting their protest to the calamity that had been given to their ears for a fraction of seconds. Before the sound destroyed it, the dawn appeared to be so perfect, so breath taking, and so true, that nothing could match its beauty for a course of century. Nevertheless, the Railgun couldn't help to destroy it, because her mind was suddenly pulled into another decision in which she wasn't involved. It was not like that she hated the decision that Misaka Misuzu had made, but rather, she was in a state of complete… denial.

Misaka Mikoto was still in her room, but not with the peaceful expression that could be got from someone who was resting, but rather, her face appeared to be full of shock, as if the lightning that she produced had shocked herself, charring her just like the way she did to delinquents. Her eyes widened and she was covered by sweat, together with a little blush that adorned her face, the evidence of her shocked state, and also accompanied with unbelievable tense which seemed to press her heart. In front of her, was the sight of someone who inherited her look to Mikoto, a graceful woman which was oh so mature and oh so beautiful. She was sitting on the only armchair that the room provided, crossing her arms in front of her surprisingly big chest. Misaka Misuzu's expression was no longer cheerful, just like what she always had to anyone around her, changing it with a deadly serious expression that she would always wear to threaten her dearest daughter.

"Tell me again. I doubted my hearing was right," Mikoto said, stuttering wildly that it was a surprise that whole of her bed was not shaken too, showing the evidence that she was still in a complete denial. Indeed, she had heard it more than three times, and she could know that her mother was a little bit tired for repeating again and again. But she couldn't help it, because actually, she didn't want to know the reality, as denial began swallowing her mind for not accepting it.

Misuzu sighed in exasperation. She knew that her daughter wouldn't like the decision that she had made, but wasn't repeating it for seven times in less than five minutes was not adequate for her to at least acknowledging it? Let alone, her decision was made for the sake of her own daughter, as she felt insecure for the safety of her daughter, despite of the power that she had. Why couldn't she at least… understand?

"I said, Misaka Mikoto," Misuzu said, with a deadly serious expression and tune which somehow jerked Mikoto backwards for a sudden solemn situation her mother had given to her. "You will live with Touma for maybe two weeks, to ensure your safety because I didn't think you will be safe after this incident. I had called the principal of Tokiwadai Middle School and asked for his permission for you to not stay in your dorm for maybe two weeks. He agreed, and also, Touma agreed. After two weeks, you can return back to your dorm. Say that I have a bad feeling; a painful feeling which said that this incident was just a... beginning of everything," she said.

Misaka lowered her head, looking defeated by the seriousness that her mother had applied. It was the face that her mother always used to make her daughter didn't disobey her, or in any means, it was an absolute order, and she must do it nonetheless. That expression could also mean that Misaka Misuzu won't accept any arguments and opinions from her daughter, and it could also mean that her purpose for giving that order was the best choice and if Mikoto didn't accept it, she would be in trouble, not from her mother, but from the result for not obeying her mother. For summarizing everything, Mikoto could only obey her mother right now. Even though she said that it was her bad feeling that moved her to make that decision, a hint of her paranoid thought, but Mikoto knew, that mother's instinct toward her daughter was the best in the world, and danger would likely to happen. Despite all of the facts that she had known, she just couldn't accept it with an opened heart. It was not like that she was bothered for living with Touma just for two weeks, but it didn't seem to be all right for her heart and body to keep themselves nearby to Kamijiou Touma. No, she was not prepared for it.

Misaka's blush hadn't left her cheek yet, ignoring the fact that she had been calmed down a little. The brown haired girl stared at her hands, not daring to look at her mother's eyes. It was not like that she was scolded for being naughty, nevertheless, she was afraid that her mother would make a worse decision just by looking at her face, and on the other side, she really wanted to hide the red cheeks that had been plastered on her face. Part of her was somehow happy because of the fact that she would spend more time with the spiky haired guy, part of her was not happy at all, imagining the life she would be thrown into. She had no any preparation for that, she was not ready. It would be different if she must stay with other guy, whom she didn't have a spot on, but this was Touma, Kamijiou Touma, everything would be different for her.

In conclusion, she was in a complete denial.

"So, Mikoto-chan, will you do it?" Misuzu asked, staring at her directly, regardless the reality that Mikoto planned not to look at her at all. One could say that Mikoto was angry at her, for her anger made her not to respect her mother by not looking at her. But being her mother for more than ten years could make Misuzu knew, that her daughter was not angry, she was just a little bit... what's the word?

Shy...

After a slight moment of silence that allowed the calm breeze's sound to dominate the atmosphere freely, Mikoto broke the ice, not because she wanted to, but rather, because she knew that her mother demanded the answer that satisfied her. She didn't need to be the smartest person in the world to know what her mother wanted her to answer, although it was very hard to say it, but she eventually said it, becoming the path that she would walk on for the entire two weeks, becoming her fate, which would beckon a different life.

"Okay...," Mikoto mumbled, but successfully reached her mother's ears in just a fraction of seconds. Her mother smiled, being thankful that at least she had a daughter that would understand, or at least, had a daughter that obeyed her. It gave her so much relaxation in her body, for at least, she didn't need to worry about her so much, because she knew, that the spiky haired guy would always be there for her daughter, protecting her as though he was a paladin in a war, guarding her daughter as though she was the last woman on the earth.

"Glad you said it," Misuzu said as the genuinity and honesty overwhelmed her outer appearance, whether it was tune or expression. Then, she stood, leaving the armchair that had supported her weight since the first time she came into her daughter's room, began taking her leave, and started speaking again.

"Come on, you said earlier that you want to visit your junior right?"

Mikoto nodded, leaving her bed that had been her friend since yesterday, and it was the first time she actually left it. She and her mother then exited the room and closed the door, leaving an empty space that still had the aura of the two; as a place that should be memorable for them, or at least for Mikoto, becoming a turnback point of the change of her life, a new momentarily life with Kamijiou Touma.

* * *

><p>It was ten o'clock already when she left the room in which Shirai Kuroko took a rest. The said teleporter was sleeping when she entered the room with her mother, but there, she could find the presence of her other two friends from Sakugawa Middle School: Ruiko Saten and Uiharu Kazari. They, including her mother, chatted happily, forgetting the incident that had been experienced by the two Tokiwadai Middle School's students. It was very amazing that the unison of the four (even though Kuroko was only sleeping) could relax her muscle a little bit, spreading the friendly atmosphere that she would always dream of. They really were friends that she loved the most.<p>

The time was not so adequate for them to chat freely, as the clock which showed the time seemed to move so fast, making Uiharu to jerk on her own seat, shrieking in disbelieve because she forgot to attend the Judgement's meeting at ten o'clock. She clumsily permitted herself, and ran hastily across the corridor of the hospital. Mikoto herself was not sure for Uiharu's safety, for she swore that she heard a bumping sound, together with her shriek and apology vividly from the corridor. Uiharu still was the clumsy Uiharu, and at least Mikoto sighed in relief that the various character that her friends had appeared to color the day she took a flight in.

Her mother left too, saying that she had an urgent business influencing her university studies; just a moment after Uiharu exited the room. She gave Mikoto a good bye kiss as she left, somehow gave her a blush of embarrassment to her cheeks. Really, she had entered middle school; nevertheless, her mother still treated her like a child. It was not like Mikoto hated it, but, wasn't doing that in front of her friends a little bit… mortifying?

Whatever it was, that only left Ruiko Saten and her in Kuroko's room. Determining the cheerful atmosphere that had been depleted slightly by the current lack of people, together with the fact that Shirai Kuroko should have enough rest and their existences there were just a bother, they left, to her room for Mikoto, and to the supplementary class for Saten. They exited the room, closing the door behind them as the corridor began filling their sight again, with some occasional passing doctors and nurses who didn't seem to be tired for walking the entire day and the entire life.

A light conversation was something that accompanied them to reach their destinations. Saten decided to join Mikoto's walk back to her room, because the supplementary class would start in one hour, giving her enough time to do other kind of stuffs. Mikoto, of course, being a friendly individual that she had trained from the first time she joined the socialization, didn't mind at all. In fact, she was a little bit relieved that at least Saten would give her another company, as she doubted that she wouldn't get bored for staying at the hospital for another day. Actually, she was very okay right now, the bandage that covered her forehead previously had been removed, and she was better than yesterday. Nonetheless, she was still a patient, with a proof of a white hospital gown, hanging loosely from her shoulder, being the only one that covered her body, and it could only mean, that she was still not in her normal state. Her energy was still in a bad shape, and she felt tired fast, with one hour chat that was enough to replenish her own energy. Of course, she didn't show it to anyone, but right now, she felt as if her eyes began heavier and heavier, and she felt very sluggish, making her to walk much slower than she normally did. That's why she decided to stay in the hospital today, and left the building tomorrow.

Yeah, leave the building and live with Kamijiou Touma.

Thinking about that was enough to make some amount of blood made its way through to her cheeks, giving the red hue to them again for countless time this morning. She really wished that her mother didn't make that decision from the first time, let alone, with a serious expression that adorned her face.

Ruiko Saten, who was walking alongside of her, found it very strange to see the Railgun to be a little bit sluggish, for her spirit usually was the best that she could emanate, raising the moral of the four friends. Wearing the Sakugawa Middle School as always, with a bag which was hanging loosely on her shoulder and a cell phone in her right hand, she looked at Mikoto with a concerned look, thoroughly knowing the situation the Railgun was in. She must be very tired, dealing with various incidents that she didn't want to be influenced, dragging herself to another malicious plan that other had done. It was luck that she was blessed by the power to manipulate electricity, or maybe it was a misfortune, because she was somehow sure, that her power was one of the things that dragged her to this kind of situation.

"Are you okay, Misaka-san?" Saten said with a little bit worried tune. She tilted her head a little to find Misaka's face; to be a little bit red in color and it just gave her more and more worried feeling. "Your face was red, you catch up a cold?" she continued.

"Oh, no," Mikoto said, waving her hands, and in the process, the red hue was finally gone, as the thought of a certain spiky haired guy was disappeared for a fraction of seconds. "I'm okay, just a little bit tired," she continued.

Saten smiled at her with a knowing look. It was a general opinion and truth that her friend called Misaka Mikoto was not a social type too much. Indeed, she had a lot of acquaintance, but the one that she recognized as friends were maybe just her, Kuroko, and Uiharu, as she formed a barrier from her to the social circle, which Mikoto presumed as essential, and although she was one of Mikoto's friend, but still, it didn't mean that she would always be open to her.

"Hey, you see… I am perfectly okay!" Misaka said, ensuring her health to the individual next to her, who watched her with an amused smile on her face, somehow made Misaka knew that Saten was not so sure. "I've taken a rest yesterday and…"

And she couldn't finish her words again.

A sudden pressure suddenly came to her brain, pressing it with the equivalence of being downtrodden by a massive piano, trying to crush every single part of her brain. Her eyes widened, sweat began drenching her body, her muscle tensed peculiarly, and she gritted her teeth, trying to resist the sudden pressure that was put in her head. The pain was so hard that she wondered why she didn't faint in the first place, as though her body tried not to be unconscious, but it just let her to feel any pain that was caused by the pressure. She found herself hard to be breath, hard to move, as though all of her cells finally stopped activating, leaving only hollow spherical tiny things in her body. Her knees gave up, and she couldn't walk or move for a second, but fell down to the lifeless floor beneath her, and what she could only hear, was just the shouting voice for her name from a familiar voice of Saten Ruiko, and what she saw after that, was darkness.

* * *

><p>Even though Vatican City was the smallest country in the world, its name was much famous other than the other four countries which could be also considered as the smallest; Monaco, Nauru, San Marino, and Liechtenstein. Built within an accidental protecting gate called Rome, Vatican City took a great role as the major place for all Catholic people. It was located in the center part of Rome, being the only way to enter the city. Despite of its small area, but its population had reached one thousand and five hundred people; too many to fill the space which was only 0.43 kilometers square. Tourist and townspeople were mingled into one, creating the crowded city which was called as Vatican City now.<p>

In the south western part of the city, the basilica of St. Peter was soaring high to the azure blue sky majestically, being the largest and the most beautiful church in the world. It was a symbolism of the unison of all Catholic people. It was believed as the place where the first saint in the world, Peter, died after he had been crucified upside-down, and was buried there. Its historical properties and beauty were one of the landmarks that everybody should see, as its beauty was hard to be compared by any other building that was built by human race. It was the place where the Pope, the leader of the Catholic people in the entire earth, the representative of God in the earth, or whatever you may call him, usually appeared to give his preach to the population of people who would normally stand in the St. Peter's square.

At the northern part of the church was the Papal Chapel, the place where the Pope lived and did his activity. It was a big castle or chapel with the view of Vatican Garden which was oh so green, pure, natural, and true, which also resembled the majesty and the might of God Himself. The Vatican Garden appeared to be cared daily by the best gardener in the world, making it one of the most artistic sight in Vatican City, along with the rising and setting sun which showed the dawn and dewfall, the panorama that Vatican Garden provided was so breath taking.

The Pope was now standing in the Sistine Chapel, looking at the ceiling which had been painted perfectly by the artist, poet, engineer, sculptor, and inventor called Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni. Renowned for his persistence in painting, Michelangelo painted the ceiling with perfection and fullness that could even match the work from the God Himself that it was said that even on the darkest part of the ceiling, where everybody wouldn't notice, the painting was remained perfect, showing a great persistence in painting. Painted for about four years with lying body that Michelangelo had perfected only for the ceiling, the painting told everyone about the doctrine of Christianity, from the Creation of God, the Downfall of Men, the Promise of Salvation, and the Geneaology of Christ, influencing every part of Christian's history.

The Pope loved the painting very much. Being an art lover just like he would always be, he was never bored of staring at the painting, together with the occasional light that penetrated the Sistine Chapel via the window. He didn't only love the painting, but also admired it, as the only painting that caught his eyes, as its beauty could even match the painting from Leonardo Da Vinci himself. Wearing the usual attire just like yesterday, that was: typical papal regalia and bore a crosier bearing a crusifixed Christ and another figure on the opposite end. His beard and hairs were all white, showing his elderly characteristic which appeared to be wise and kind.

His figure was no different than any other statues that surrounded him, making it hard for anyone not to mistake him as the other idols. Admiration was the one that overwhelmed his mind, as the sight of the ceiling of Sistine Chapel was so majestic, catching every attention from his brain, relaxing his muscle a little bit, with a little glow from the sunlight outside which penetrated the room, somehow created a view of thousand orbs of seraph, The Pope, or Matthai Reese to be precised, stayed quite as if he was ready to be sculpted.

It couldn't last long, only until the door of the Sistine Chapel opened loudly, and a figure of a skinny man with tall height, entered the room. He was a young guy which seemed to be perfectly different from the Pope's elderly figure, creating a certain contrast between the two people. His long hair was disentangled to his shoulder, and his appearance was dominated by red color which covered his clothes, and his hair.

Fiamma of the Right, the leader of God's Right Seat, entered the room with his usual antique; a calm expression, together with a certain slight smile which seemed to be plastered to his face from his birth. His eyes seemed to be full of mystery, something that made everyone wondered of the fact that this man was one of the Pope's acquaintances. After he had opened the door, he approached the Pope slowly, but surely, with the stare of the Pope himself which accompanied him. The calm atmosphere suddenly changed by a hectic, and also uncomfortable one, as though the serenity of the room had been fully absorbed by Fiamma's calm expression.

"We have a new problem, Pope Matthai Reese," Fiamma said calmly, still with a slight smile on his face. His eyes were the only hint of the seriousness of the conversation, staring directly to Matthai as if he wasn't a Pope.

"What is it Fiamma? Imagine Breaker?" the Pope said. It was a usual general conversation about the two, regarding the existence of a boy who had the power of Imagine Breaker, which they thought as heresy (or at least, for Fiamma's point of view). It was also known widely that the Vatican Church had hunted down the Imagine Breaker boy with no result, and even Acqua of The Back, who got the alignment with Archangel Gabriel, couldn't defeat him. It was not so surprising though, because even angel was disturbed by the power of Imagine Breaker. It was really a power which was excessive from the God, and eventually, gave it a power to fight against God, negating His power and blessing as if they were nothing.

"Not only that," Fiamma said. "My spy in Academy City, the capital of science side, had conveyed to me that an existence which had resemblance to angel had appeared. It was not very good if Aleister used it against us. We must destroy it," Fiamma continued.

"A spy?" the pope said, a little bit shocked by the presence of something that he didn't know (and only for you to know, there are so many of them). "I thought there would impossibly be a spy in Academy city, let alone, Oriana Thompson was defeated last time," he continued, raising his volume of voice a little bit.

"Oriana Thompson was just a bait, Matthai," Fiamma calmly answered. "Indeed, she had power, but when the information had leaked to Anglican church, I had no any interest in her. When she created calamity in Academy City, I also inserted some spies to Academy City. They were not very effective though, because I just ordered a magician to brainwash some people who entered the city when Daihaseisai event occured. Nevertheless, they were able to contact me, contact us little by little, by a little sharing of thought that even though a little bit blurry, but informative, and the last information they said was this."

Fiamma raised his hand upwards, chanting some magical spells calmly as he closed his eyes. Then, an orb of light was formed from his hand, shining so brightly that it could blind the Pope's eyes, began coloring the surrounding with its golden hue, plastered on Fiamma's palm as he continued his chanting. The orb of light bursted suddenly in the same time as Fiamma stopped chanting his spell. The room of Sistine Chapel appeared to be full of light suddenly, and the Pope could see a little fraction of glimmers of seraph which could be found surrounding them. The air above was torn suddenly, and within tear was light, and the sound of a woman could be heard from that tear.

"... explosion... blue light to the sky... a girl with blue wings... she... angel?... a spiky haired boy... rain... gone...,"

The voice was so vague, as expected and accepted by the Pope's brain because Fiamma had said that the connection that had been created was blurry. It somehow made the voice a little bit eerie, even though the fact that they were in a place which was full of light because of Fiamma's spell. Nevertheless, something caught up Matthai Reese's ears as a sudden realization hit him swiftly, and he was a little bit surprised, really.

"Angel?" the Pope whispered in disbelief.

Fiamma nodded as the usual slight grin adorned his face. "This thought was the one that I got from a waitress in the cafe that was located just in front of the event that had taken place. She became a waitress after she entered the Academy City via Daihaseisai, and one of the people that was brainwashed. It was thought that she had watched the event from a distance, and at least it was what we had," Fiamma continued.

Matthai Reese asked him out of the blue, not allowing any silence which began to form between them. "Is it one of Aleister's plan? This entity was the one that will attack us?" he said with a little concerned tune, thoroughly worried about the side he was in; the magic side and the religion side. It was not like that he loved the war or else, but rather, his thought was filled with the sight of Catholic people who forgot anything about religion and God, and started a life as atheist. It was really something that he didn't want to see.

"Oh, of course I had prepared everything," Fiamma said, and a sudden energy suddenly surrounded the two, and the light was absorbed back to Fiamma's palm. Then, he massaged his palm and looked at the Pope directly, creating another uncomfortable atmosphere between them as the topic was one of the factors of the discomfort.

"But since Acqua had been defeated, that only left you and me to defeat him. I couldn't, because I must stay here, or my arrival in Academy City would cause so many attractions. So I presumed that you would be the one who destroyed this entity?" The Pope said, showing a little hint about every reality that taken place just in three weeks; the downfall of three members of God's Right Seat. It was not like that he was afraid of facing this entity, in fact, Pope's class magic was something that was hard to be destroyed and defeated, even greater than any arcbishops and other magicians, or even saints. Nevertheless, his arrival in Academy City would cause so many attractions. It was not funny if the newspaper told his arrival and his doing in the Academy City.

"I won't be the one that destroy it, Matthai," Fiamma replied with a style as though he was capable to destroy that entity. "I had another trump card, you know."

"What is that?" The said Pope replied with another confusion implanted on his face. It was usual for him to see the mystery that Fiamma had concealed from the first time they worked together. But wasn't it a little bit too much for keeping mystery about this important event? He was a Pope, after all, the leader of Catholic Church, the representative of God in the world. "Tell me everything, Fiamma."

Fiamma gave a sadistic smirk upon he heard Matthai's statement. "So, to start everything, do you know who is Dante Allegrini?"

The Pope stared at him, trying to remember the individual that Fiamma had mentioned. Of course, everyone would know who Dante Allegrini was, for his literary work had changed the world itself. He knew also because Dante's literary works; Divine Comedy, was something that was prohibited to be watched or acknowledged for him. Even though he didn't know why, but it was an unspoken rule in the Vatican Church that had been inherited from previous pope which said that a Pope shouldn't read Divine Comedy, and, as a good Pope he would always be, he obeyed it anyway.

"He was a poet, right?"

Fiamma stared at him with a blank look, and somehow, his etenal smile was gone for a fraction of seconds. He then sighed, releasing an amount of water vapor to the air as he did so. Then, he faced the Pope Matthai Reese again, and began speaking. "You should stop reading only bible and grimoires which are only special for a Pope. You should read others, or your head will be blocked by nothing but peace," he continued.

Matthai was taken aback a little by Fiamma's statement. He was insulted, to be honest. Really, Fiamma was his friend, but he was also a Pope. Fiamma should have a kind of polite manner to speak to him at least. "Then, tell me, Fiamma."

"Dante Allegrini was not only a poet. Nevertheless, he was one of the greatest magicians that ever lived. He was the one who had an ability to form a bridge for him to cross to the other world, or I must say, to hell, and to heaven. Dante's poet about Divine Comedy was not something that he only analyzed, but it was what he saw, what he felt, what he heard in heaven and hell," Fiamma said, starting his explanation, and he didn't seem in the mood for repeating.

The Pope gave him a surprised look. He never knew something like that until now, and Fiamma's statement was a little bit too hard to be accepted. Dante Allegrini... a magician who was able to for a bridge to cross to the other world, the one who finally saw heaven and hell. Just what other things that he didn't know?

"Then, he wrote Divine Comedy to expand his knowledge. The 'Comedy' words came because in the story, the main protagonist, Dante himself, ended in a happy ending, and when his time, 'Comedy' was the one that showed the happy ending," Fiamma said. "Dante's poem was not a usual poem, but also, it had magic properties, and it was considered as one of the grimoires."

Another reality came to The Pope's mind. He didn't know anything about that. It was not like that he wasn't prepared or anything, but it was just a little bit... surprising.

"His knowledge was the one who became a turning point for every magician in the world. They would likely believe about two things: the existence of demon, and angel, creating two contrast branches that were known as angelology and demonology," Fiamma said, stopping his barrage of words to catch a breath, and began speaking again. "The magicians in the world, especially Europe, tried to get the power from demon and angel. But, they could only choose one, because the existence of one contradicted each other," Fiamma continued.

The Pope stayed silent, trying to take every barrage of word that Fiamma had given to him. He didn't really know how much Fiamma knew about this world. Seeing him like this, Matthai felt very… stupid.

"The magicians who took the power of demon to create spell was the one who dominated the land first, it was also due to the fact that human was wicked in heart, and demon would likely be able to be manipulated, because the requisite for taking a power from demon was just to have a sinful heart," Fiamma said. "For a quiet moment of time, the demonic magicians dominated the land."

"It was Pope Innocent VI who finally knew the existence of demonic magician. Thus, he ordered the mass hunt of demonic magician, or maybe they were called as warlock from that time," Fiamma said. "The warlock was said to be sinful in nature, for their ritual included orgy sex, cannibalistic infanticide, and also, heresy to the Ten Commandments which said 'You should have no other Gods before me'." Fiamma continued his explanation. "The warlock was tortured, burnt, and crucified with the flame engulfed them. Their eyes were taken, and their skin was flayed."

The Pope stayed silent, allowing Fiamma to continue.

"The warlock, starting to know the punishment that was oh so inhuman, stopped their use of power from demon, and even though they had done that, the warlock hunting that had been done for more than a century had depleted the race of warlock greatly. Some of them fled to Russia, as the place that was safest for them, because the majority of warlock hunting was located in central Europe, and also Northern Europe. The grimoires that were taken with them were buried deep within the place, started to be forgotten," Fiamma said. "The magician then started to find another power to rely on, and angel was the only one that could provide it, so, the age of holy magic began.

"Continue," The Pope finally said, after some moment of one sided silence, allowing his voice box to do its job that seemed to be forgotten for a fraction of seconds.

"Nevertheless, the grimoires were found in Russia, then, it was taken to San Fransisco, America, nowadays; being the only country which was secular, allowing any kind of religion that exist. They formed the Church of Satan," Fiamma said.

"And what's their business with this?" the Pope said in curiosity, and somehow, he had a bad feeling that was oh so disturbing and tingling.

"I made a deal with them, and they will be the one who help us," Fiamma said simply, without bothering to look at the Pope in front of him.

The room finally found the wickedness that had been avoided, with the painting of the Sistine Chapel's ceiling become the only one which became the bystander. The occasional light which penetrated the room appeared to stop, as the statement from the leader of God's Right Seat began striking Matthai Reese's ears with the equivalence of a storm that destroyed a ship.

"What!" Matthai shouted, finally found his voice again, echoed in the room which appeared to be sad for a fraction of seconds. "I'm a Pope! What did you…"

"I did it for greater goods," Fiamma said nonchalantly, cutting the Pope's words. Then, a footstep's sound began entering each other's ears, and little known that the Pope could find something wrong with the footsteps. The door opened loudly, revealing a man with a cloak appeared to cover his body.

"Welcome, Raven Huer."

The time appeared to stop when the warlock stepped on Sistine Chapel. The painting in the ceiling seemed to be sad, watching the scene beneath them as finally, the purest church began falling to endless darkness.

**_The name Raven Huer was not from me, it was from an author called Tom Valor..._**

**_Review please?_**


	4. Time and Space of Friendship and Love

**Chapter 4:**** Time and**** Space of Friendship and Love**

It was very hilarious to know that human's life was usually simple; something that would be repeated countless time from the first time the human was created. Human's life was modest by the way, and it could be included in just three words; each showed the step of human's life. The first was childhood; which could represent the happiest time in human's life, as the only time when someone could only think about his or her joy, laughing happily in the midst of problem, enjoying every bit of human's and God's creation with his or her hands. What they had in their brain was happiness, and they usually would achieve it, because the fact that there were abundant of loves that they would receive. Nevertheless, childhood also essential in human's life, as a step when someone was first carved by the hands of parents, something that would prepare him or her to the next step of life.

The second step of human's life was adolescence; a period when someone started to think about their purpose of life, the function of their existence, and their roles in the humanity. The adolescence also showed more reality of life; life was harsh, life was enjoyable, life was dull, life was grief, life was bliss, life was blessing, life was void, or every other perception that had been made or had been done. What they thought about life in adolescence period would determine what an individual would be; what path they would choose; what reality they would care. Adolescence was the most crucial time in human's life, as something that would create the variety of characters and dispositions of human. Human was created by experiences; and it would determine what an individual would be.

The final step of human's life was adulthood. This step was the result of adolescence and childhood's experience, each would leave any marks that were eternal in human's mind, body, and soul. The adulthood was the time when someone did his or her purpose of life, uniting himself or herself with other human in different gender in a bond of marriage. Then, from the unison of two souls that had been together as one, a new individual would be born from the female's womb; as someone who would inherit their parent's life, someone who would be their successor, or every other thing you would like to say. The human who had reached the adulthood would likely use their experiences from the past to carve their children, and then, their children would grow strong, would walk to another step, and so on.

The never–ending cycle would always be repeated, and it would somehow create confusion in the thought of every critical person. Why must the human be created? What will the world be? If the cycle never ceased to go on, where would the life be led into? Why must God create human? Was God an arrogant entity who looked for nothing but glory, demanding praises from human, as His creation? Nevertheless, no matter how many times the thought appeared, the cycle would never cease until the world faced apocalypse. It was a life, it was a reality, it was you, it was me, and it was the world.

Because of this never-ending characteristic, human's life would be boring, repeating something that had been repeated, as the repetition would create repetitive activity from day to day, from night to night. Therefore, a pure purpose of life should be achieved, as something that would make your life became more and more interesting, intriguing, influential, vigorous, and happy. The purposes of life in every individual may vary, but they had the same characteristic that would create one group, and there would be only one group alone, as the only sky that human would always want from the earth, despite their lack of ability to fly gracefully to their destination.

It was love.

Yes, it was love, so much more than any usual animal's instinct, so much more than any usual flower in a plantation, so much more than any other beautiful scenery of the setting sun. It was a message of affection, a message of attachment, a message only to your… loved ones, as something that you would dearly love. Even the most self-absorbed people also had love; a love to themselves, using other people as a shield of their life, and nothing more. The love itself may vary, and each could represent the difference of individuals in the current space and time: love for your own life, love for your own principle, love for your own dignity, love for you own status, love for your friends, love for your parents, love for your children, love for your husband or wife, and even love to your God. It was love, which would make the weakest dare to face the strongest. It was love, which would make someone to face the giant army of soldiers and monsters in front of their loved one. It was love, which would make a dictator bow in front of his or her enemy for the sake of their loved one. It was love, which made the world's go round.

It was also love, which made Misaka Misuzu made a decision to make her daughter, Misaka Mikoto; the object of her love, to live with Kamijou Touma.

* * *

><p>"Mom! Did you hear me?"<p>

Mikoto's voice penetrated the atmosphere that the interior of the car had created. She was sitting beside the driver's seat, looking at the figure of Misaka Misuzu who was driving beside her with an irritated voice that she had been used for a quiet sometime. Behind them, in the back seat of the car, a certain spiky haired boy, Kamijou Touma, was seen to be snoring loudly, ignoring the one sided quarrel that the individuals in front of him provided, finding it amusing because Mikoto's voice was louder and louder in every minute. Maybe it was because of the softness of the car's seat, maybe it was because of the tiredness that he had experience, maybe it was because of his lack of sleep on the last day. Nevertheless, whatever it was, he was sleeping as though he hadn't slept for three days, relaxing his muscle with the best effort that he could. He had changed his attire at least, appeared from his changed T-shirt beneath his usual black jacket. His pants also seemed to be clean and neat, visible from the loss of dirt and pure blackness that had become its tint for today.

Misaka Mikoto's hospital gown had been nowhere to be seen, changed with her usual Tokiwadai Middle School's uniform: a white shirt beneath beige jacket with short bluish skirt as the completion. The flower hair clip was still seen hanging on her eternal hazel hair, with her hair made its way only to her shoulder, and no more. Her eyes were somehow furious, a negative sign for those who were around her, because usually a massive voltage of electricity would be produced from her forehead and would zap everyone around her. Nevertheless, the blue line hue of electricity was not formed, as she also knew that the individual beside her was the one who had been her mother for the entire of her life, who had given birth to her fourteen years ago, who had taken care of her for almost her entire life. No, no matter how irritating the individual beside her, she would never harm Misaka Misuzu.

But it still didn't get rid of the feeling that the individual beside Misaka Mikoto was irritating.

The weather was not the same as yesterday's, but it was usual for this autumn season. The water droplets that fell high from the sky above stroke the ground beneath endlessly, the same with the droplets that befell the car in which the Misakas and Kamijou resided, creating the sound of water's contact with whatever it was which blocked its way, giving a certain adequate chill around the peripheral sense. The car's wiper appeared to be never bored to protect car's windshield from blocking Misuzu's sight whilst she was driving, effectively removing any trace of water droplets from her vision. The grey sky was visible, adorning the atmosphere with its hue with somehow gloomy sensation that was rather hard to be recognized, perfectly blocking the eternal sun which was there, hiding behind the perennial cloud as if it demanded its protection. It was another dawn, but yet, it was not as bright as a morning should be.

Misaka Misuzu was seen driving in the driver's seat, with her hazel eyes stayed in her current position, looking straight to the road afore with some occasional glance to the rearview mirror for usual check of safety, giving a good example of perfect driver as she drove smoothly. She was wearing her usual attire as if they were the only clothes that she had: a usual white shirt with blue jeans. The car which was rented for a day only for that day was white in hue, with an outer appearance of a sedan. A BMW logo was seen plastering itself on the hood, sparkling brightly in the midst of the rain as if it was proud with its status of being a famous brand. The car was comfortable, and it was enjoyable. It was only Mikoto's continuous demand of explanation that was not comfortable, resulting her to shout indignantly at her mother as endless as the falling rain from the grey sky above.

"It was a prejudice, Mikoto-chan," Misuzu started to speak, after a quiet moment of silence that she had done, trying not to listen to any of Mikoto's demand of explanation. Nevertheless, it was irritating for her too, so at least, an answer wouldn't do any bad right? "Please don't ask anymore question about this," she continued.

"A prejudice? It is clearly not you, thinking about prejudice and all," Mikoto said at her highest pitch for which everyone would be surprised of Touma's state of continuous sleeping, giving a thought of ostensible activity for not wanting to be influenced by the two's endless quarrel. "I'm your daughter! And I know more about you than you could imagine! You didn't even know the situation, so why did you do that?" Mikoto said, puffing her chest in process as she looked at her mother in an irritating manner, with her tune penetrated the sound that had been caused by water's contact to the windshield.

The car went forward the Academy City's boulevard with several others, passing a never ending flow of walking pedestrians that never stopped doing their activities, protecting themselves from continuous rain, guarded only by a usual umbrella and rain jacket. After a moment of time, the car eventually reached a traffic lamp, with its red color which decorated its bulb as the sign of absolute order to stop moving. The car stopped, and in this position, Misuzu decided to face her daughter again, with the seriousness that she had done just for yesterday, as her hazel eyes appeared to be full of fire, staring sharply at the figure of her daughter with the equivalence of an eagle which was looking for its prey.

"Stop talking about this," Misuzu said, with her deadly tune decorated her deadly stare.

Misaka Mikoto gulped an amount of thick saliva somehow, with some amount of accidental sweat that was flown on her skin, thoroughly aware by the sudden change of atmosphere that her mother had done in process. For all powers that Misaka Mikoto had, there were only two men… women to be précised who had a power to intimidate her by only a little glance. First was her dorm supervisor, who would break necks of any students that would do something against the Tokiwadai Middle School's rule, with a cold look as if she had no regret for doing that. The second was her own mother, as her seriousness was somehow intimidating, giving her an absolute ability of being a mother… or being a dictator.

"Okay," Misaka Mikoto said, lowering her head in defeat as she did so. She was fully aware that her mother didn't want to push the issue further. She just would accept the reality behind her eyes with gritting teeth… or a smiling face.

Misaka Misuzu then sighed, releasing an amount of water vapor to the air in process as though it was happy for being released. She closed her eyes in process momentarily, in a bored way for having to repeat her solemn that she disliked. She looked forward again, staring at the red bulb of light that appeared to never go out until the time told it so, waiting for it to slake, changed with the green bulb that began shining, so that she could go forward. But whatever it was, a sudden image, so much more than any usual memory, flew into her mind, just like the continuous orb of light as her stare appeared to be so faraway, looking at something invisible, as if she demanded for it to do something.

And then, her mind was no longer there.

Her brain, or to be precised, the amygdala part of her brain which stored most of her memory began forming an image. It was an image of her, two days ago to be précised, the time when she got an information from her study mates that her daughter, Misaka Mikoto was involved in an explosion and was sent to the hospital. Of course, as a good mother she would always be, she took that information as swiftly as possible, skipping her study, and made her way to the hospital. In her way, in the railway station's waiting room for the train to the hospital, she decided to give a call to her husband, regarding the condition of her dearest daughter. Surely, the said father took the information in upset manner, and the father, or Misaka Tabikake, said that he would call Misuzu later in just a moment.

And from that fact only, the bad feeling that she had concealed perfectly in her cheerful heart emerged.

It was not like that Misaka Tabikake, Misuzu's husband and Mikoto's father, was the worst father in the world for not giving a call so much to his wife and daughter. Nevertheless, it was the lack of dangerous events that made it unusual for Misaka Tabikake to give a call. Particularly, the said father and husband would just give some messages for things that were not so essential, as his bussiness was so endless and abundant for he couldn't give his wife and daughter a call so much. Misuzu was grateful enough that her husband always gave her a message, even sneaking around in his meeting with his mates. But this time was different... if Tabikake would give her a call, then, this thing, this event was an emergency.

Nonetheless, being a cheerful woman and also a childish and naive type, Misuzu dismissed the thought quickly, thinking that her husband was just... what? Oh yeah, yearning, that's the word. It had been a quiet long time for Tabikake for not talking to her so much, for his bussiness took so much of his time (finding the flaws in the world and correcting them was not easy you know). Yes, that must be it. She mustn't be so paranoid.

... must she?

It was in the train, the electric train to be exact, which was oh so elegant that it seemed almost demanded everybody's attention for it, the cell phone that had been almost forever connecting Misuzu with the outer life rang loudly, penetrating the vague sound of the electric train, infiltrating the chilly atmosphere that the interior part of the train had provided. As her reflex announced her to, her hand moved slowly towards her pocket, as the reaction of what she had heard. Then, she pressed the 'call' green button and moved it towards her ears. As the cell phone made its contact to Misuzu's ear, a heavy voice out of the blue took all of her attention greatly. It was the voice of her husband.

"Dear, you should listen to me carefully, give your greatest attention to me."

Misaka Tabikake's voice was still his particular one: a calm voice which appeared to be always eternal that Misuzu invariably admired. He was a strong and great man, standing in the front, having a job to look for the flaws in the world and to correct them. Nevertheless, Misuzu could find another vague feeling which could be sensed in the tune that Tabikake had used. It was a concern, a concern of losing his loved one, somehow concealed by his calm tune, but it was always audible in the ears of the one who had been his couple for more than fourteen years.

"What is it honey? Is there something wrong?" Misuzu replied, even though she had known just from her feeling and prejudice that there was something which was wrong in her husband's eyes, and being a great man he would always be, it must be very important. Misuzu could feel that her heart thumped somehow, and she afraid that it could wake the other passengers around. She tried to calm herself, as being creative in making prejudice was usually not her specialty, but she couldn't.

"Please take Mikoto-chan away from Academy City forever, or if you have other option, please have someone you really trust to guard her. Don't worry; the second option won't be in a long time, just maybe around two weeks or so. Please do one of the options," Tabikake said, speaking in a surprisingly calm state even though the content of his words didn't resemble it. Nonetheless, anybody could know that he was filled with concern for his daughter only. "The incident... the explosion that caused Mikoto-chan to stay in the hospital... This is bad..."

The sentences hit Misuzu's brain just like a bulb of thunderbolt around the midst of stormy sea, charring everything that blocked its way. Her eyes widened in surprise, as she managed to release a low shriek. All of the neurons of her brain returned her to the time when she was visiting her daughter in Daihaseisai event. It was the time when she saw the figure of her daughter, who smiled happily, having so many friends and experiences that Misuzu doubted she had experienced. She was carved in Academy City, being a strong individual, not being a toddler who cried for Santa Claus when her doll was broken. She developed more in Academy City, being a smart student just like what her parents always hoped. She was Academy City, creating a bond of strength, love, and courage under the sunlight which appeared to be eternal to the city and its civil itself, being the only place where she could be herself. The option to take her away from Academy City forever would always cause grief and sorrow, for losing her friend, and even her loved one.

"Take her away from Academy City?" Misuzu managed to speak again, after the shock that she had just received. She took a deep breath, and continued her word. "Why must I do that? Mikoto is very…"

"…very happy in Academy City? Yes, I can tell it in the way you retold me the story of your visit in Daihaseisai event. But this is emergency, dear. It involved the life of our daughter," he said, cutting Misuzu's words in process as he was very knowledgeable in the term of acknowledging his wife. "But listen to me. I know the culprit behind all of this, it was the owner of Academy City, or what everybody called, the general superintendent of Academy City," he continued.

"But if you know the culprit behind this, you can just capture him, or seize him, or just take him to the prison, or…"

"I believe I can, dear, as long as the evidences provide that," Tabikake cut her words again, fully knowing what his wife was thinking. "But you should know, this type of man always worked in shadow, and I had a feeling that the Board of Director of Academy City… or what you can call the government of Academy City appeared to support him, hiding every trance of flaws that the general superintendent had done, or maybe, the general of superintendent had planned, most likely like that. I had a connection with the general superintendent, and even threatened him for not harming our daughter, but he was apathetic when he heard that, and I believed that he had a plan for Mikoto-chan, a bad plan to be exact. He is a man who sees human as tools, and discards human if they are useless," he explained.

A man who saw others as tools... If what Misaka Tabikake was the truth (and it was most likely the truth itself), then it would turn out to be the worst scenario. Misuzu's thought began wandering everywhere, imagining her daughter to be filled with sorrow and pain, staying in the hospital with closed eyes without knowing when she would wake up, with her on other side of the bed, crying, regretting the lack of usefulness that she had. No, that wouldn't happen. She would never let something like that happen.

Nevertheless... still...

"But... Academy City..." Misuzu said, attempting to reply, but she had nothing to speak. Her brain, her motive, her mouth appeared to be in opposite sides. Part of her didn't want Mikoto to be taken away from Academy City, for she was very happy to live there. Part of her didn't want anything harmful to happen to Mikoto, or in other words, taking her life from the city that she loved the most. She was in a bad situation, and she just hoped that Tabikake didn't give her two options like that.

"Between me and you, the one who knows the best about our daughter is you, dear, being an individual that took most of the time taking care of her," Tabikake said, with a rigid, but somehow affectionate voice that he would always do only to his family. "I know the decision will burden your shoulders, but I don't know who else I could trust beside my own wife," he continued, and Misuzu somehow could feel the warmth that Tabikake emanated from the other side of Japan, by the catalyst of cell phone for communication. "So, please..."

"Ah, but why don't we just take her away from Academy City in just two weeks? It would be the same as..."

"...having a protector for her in two weeks? No, it would be different, dear," Tabikake said, and Misuzu could feel that her hope for that choice was also gone, changed into another endless despair as the buzzing sound of moving train could be heard in a vague way. "Academy City is a city full of light in an educative way, but also full of darkness in other way. The general superintendent is a very careful man. Leaving the city in two weeks, let alone in the school season, could mean that the individual, let aside one of the greatest espers like our daughter, tried to spread the knowledge of psychic or supernatural power to the other world. Therefore, she wouldn't be accepted again in the city. Second, if she were accepted, then she didn't know anything anymore about the Academy City. Two weeks could change the city so much, and maybe the change is something that is more harmful to Mikoto-chan," Tabikake explained whilst Misuzu could feel her brain was frustated, as hot as the cell phone that kept plastering itself on her ears.

"But what's the different with having a guardian in the city?" Misuzu asked, demanding another explanation from her husband.

"This General of Superintendent is an intelligent man, with plans within other plans, holding it in the shadow as he hides himself. Nevertheless, his weakness is the lack of patience," Tabikake said. "He is an extremely efficient man, and if in two weeks he has no any chance to be able to get a touch to someone, I bet that he will forget the individual and he will give more attention to other plan that he had set before. Thus, our daughter won't be harmed, and she will live happily again in Academy City," Tabikake continued.

Misuzu swallowed all the things that her husband said with all her might, processing every bit of them with her brain that appeared to be so full with nothing but Misaka Mikoto. Even though she didn't live for so long in the said city, but she could know that her daughter was famous and strong, being the third ranked esper in Academy City. Getting her a guardian was almost impossible, and Misuzu could know that Mikoto would disagree with her.

"Okay... I will do it," Misuzu said with a somehow vague determination within her tune. Whether she could solve the problem that her husband gave to her or not would be the other issue. Something that she must do that time was to make sure that her husband stayed out of concern by her words. If she managed to do it, then she was sure that she could solve her problems.

"Thank you, dear. I gave you my greatest luck. Then, I will bid you farewell," Tabikake said, and with the last words that he gave, somehow a vivid pray of luck to his dearest wife, he hang up, leaving nothing but disappearance of his voice from Misuzu's cell phone, replied with Misuzu's closing eyes.

The electric train had eventually reached the destination as it entered the railway station. The weak sun that penetrated the train was changed with the light from bulb of lamps that the station provided, infiltrating the train as it formed the shadow inside the train. The train stopped, and the passengers began taking their departure, exiting the train with the company of the sound from the speaker of the train, telling them the name of place they were in, and warned them to be careful. Misuzu stood up and left the train with a hundred others. After a few steps from the train's door, the said woman stared at the train quietly, with her eyes took the last sight of the place where she got all the information that somehow would change everything later.

"You should give me more than the words of fortune, my dearest husband. What I know is just the sudden explosion. Nevertheless, you, who don't even stay in the town, appear to know something beyond my knowledge. I will demand another explanation from you. But it will be later," she said calmly to herself, which was somehow very unbecoming of her. Afterwards, she left the railway station, facing the weak sun above as she started thinking about the decision she must make.

The train finally left, taking other passengers to the their destination, fully ready to provide itself as a memorial place, being a place where the people could be happy, or maybe could be sad.

* * *

><p>"Mom! Look out!"<p>

Misaka Misuzu finally came back to the present time and space, gasping in horror as she heard the tooting sound of several cars behind hers. The traffic lamp had shown the green color which was concealed before, signaling the cars to go forward. Out of deliberate reaction, she pressed the gas pedal as hard as she could, and the car dashed forward with a velocity that could make Mikoto suffered cardiac morbidity. Misuzu could hear a faint sound of someone groaning and head clashing in the passenger's seat, then, she took a glance of the individual behind quickly.

Kamijou Touma was seen massaging his head as his head made a certain hard clash with Mikoto's seat. He appeared to be fully awake, finding himself in another little incident that harmed his head. He winced in pain slightly, and it seemed that a direct touch of his hand with his head caused pain. Misuzu could tell by the relatively loud sound of head clashing before, that a protuberance had been formed on his forehead. A phrase, something that Misuzu could sure that he released accidentally out of habit, could be heard.

"Such misfortune."

In the corner of her eyes, she swore that she could see her daughter's lip curved upwards at the sight of a certain spiky haired guy, forming a smile which Misuzu always wanted to see from her dearest daughter, a sign of her happy life within the city. She took all her concentration back to the road in the front, looking straight at it to avoid further sudden tooting from the cars behind.

The rain had finally stopped, changed with an eternal sun that had waited for its appearance for only God who knew since when. The reflection of the sun began coloring the city as the civilians started closing their umbrella, being grateful that the rain had stopped. A rainbow somehow was not formed, but the great warm feeling suddenly drenched the brain of Misaka Misuzu with serene grace, being happy and covered by bliss with the sight of her daughter and her daughter's guardian angel, because she knew that she was right.

Okay, first question.

If a mother of a friend of yours suddenly asked you to take a 'job' as her daughter's guardian and protector, what will you do?

Indeed, the answers would be various; each of them would represent the behavior, carved character, and disposition of an individual. One would reject the offer quickly, without giving any glance of it, considering that the said mother was just paranoid and exaggerating, maybe even laughed at the mother. One would reject the offer slowly, thinking about the profit and loss that the individual would have, whether it was in monetary aspect, time aspect, need aspect, and ability aspect, and from that own thinking, it would likely that the individual would reject the offer, for his or her thinking must be negative, only thinking for his or her own needs and profits. Nevertheless, one would accept the offer without anymore thinking, even maybe prodding and bragging his or her ability, for the said mother would have so much faith on him or her. An old once said that a kingdom of heaven or hell, good or bad, would always be built by the chivalrous people, but would invariably be destroyed by chivalrous people, for conceit would always drag someone away from the good path, taking the individual to the bad, yet so cunning path, leading anything to destruction.

Kamijou Touma wasn't included in any of the choices.

He accepted the offer quickly, for the safety of Misaka Mikoto was something that he would always want sincerely. Nevertheless, no prodding and bragging were released from his mouth, for his knowledge of his own lack of ability in protecting someone was the one that he always pitied. Nonetheless, being a humble warrior as he would always be, he accepted it, forgetting the lack of ability momentarily, lamenting the misfortune that he would have later. It was very unique of him, as a person that hated to be involved in an incident (he had trained his legs to move with blinding speed to flee from that), but once he was dragged in an incident, no one could stop him to solve the problem by himself.

Okay, the second question.

If, for example, the individual took the offer and the mother said that he or she should move to the house, apartment, or place that was rented specially for the guardian and the guarded, what came to your mind?

Okay, for this time, Kamijou Touma never expected something fancy or something. What he knew was that Misaka Misuzu would rent an apartment for two weeks, becoming a place for him and Mikoto to live just for them. Indeed the said spiky haired guy didn't mind though, he had quite abundant experiences regarding living with females. The first one was a certain blue haired nun, who suddenly fell out of nowhere to his balcony and said nothing but 'I'm starving'. The second was a certain shrine girl, who wielded strength to attract vampire, and someone who had different stomach for hamburgers. The third was a certain purple haired girl, an individual who was trained in martial art, the member of Amakusa church, and being an individual that lived with him until yesterday. He was very grateful to have a friend like Itsuwa, for her kindness made her accept the offer willingly to take care of his school dormitory for two weeks, filling the space of the dormitory as she became a change for Kamijou Touma. Kamijou Touma himself would move to the 'little' apartment that Misuzu had rented. Well, it was maybe just a particular cheap apartment for overseas students in district 14, and just like that.

... He should know that his thought of commoner would be far different in class and everything to be compared with Misaka's family's prowess and nobility.

They were standing in front of a five star hotel in the district 3 of Academy City, as for a commoner like Kamijou Touma, he was looking straight at the tall building which appeared to be soaring high to the sky above, as the blue hue of the azure sky colored the building with its hue, together with the company of reflection of the light that the glossy window had created. From a glance of it, Touma could know that the hotel was no ordinary hotel, somehow it was built specially only for princesses and kings, adorning itself with the greatest majesty that it could give. His eyes couldn't help but widening itself in surprise, dilating their pupils in awe as the hotel appeared to be so shiny... in its way.

"Misaka Misuzu-san," Touma started, taking a glance at the two individuals that shared similar traits (except of height, maturity, and clothes), trying to process everything that came to his mind just like the flow of water in the rainy season. "Do you have a bussiness here?" he continued, scratching his hair in process, being the only individual that was so... what? Poor... nothing could explain more than that word, even though Kamijou Touma hated to say that.

"We have a bussiness here, Kamijou-san," Misuzu said, smiling at him. "You and Mikoto-chan will stay here for about...two weeks," Misuzu continued.

"This fancy hotel? Such a long time since I have been here," Mikoto said, looking straight at the hotel's lobby. Her tune didn't show any kind of surprise or shock, let alone awkwardness and anything else "I think I can have others than something this fancy, Mom," she sighed, facepalming her forehead lightly in process, as though she had known this would be coming.

"Yeah, Mikoto-chan. When it came to find a good place for you two to stay, I can't think about anything rather than this place," Misuzu answered quickly. "Fancy huh? Isn't it sure that I must provide a good environment for my litte daughter to grow hmm?" Misuzu said, looking at something in or on Mikoto's body, with the thought that only she knew what. She rubbed her chin, as though she was observing what she looked, together with a company of her narrowed eyes with the equivalence teasing 'mode' that she always did to gather and to get close the relationship of the two.

Mikoto Misaka looked at her my mother blankly, trying to process everything that her mother had told her with her innocent mind. Then, she followed her mother's stare, and looked downwards to her... what to say? Umm... right. Woman's pride (or at least it was what Mikoto thought about and cared about regarding growth). She gasped, after some moments of another thinking, showing an amount of naive, childish, and innocent thought that she still had. Her arms moved as quickly as possible to cover her body, hugging herself in process, as though her mother's stare could be considered to have an equivalence with the molesters. The blood could be seen lifting itself to her cheeks, coloring the space of flawless skin with red color.

"Where are you looking at!" Mikoto shouted indignantly, still in her previous figure. The tune and volume of the voice that she used was oh so loud, spreading itself around the peripheral sight with its wave, penetrating the ears of every passerby as they reacted by staring at the hazel haired individual that caused the voice.

Touma just sighed, watching at the whole scene with an amused smile that he seldom used recently, as a sudden realization came to his mind with the similarity of another jolt of electricity to his brain. The Misaka family was really harmonic. It was not only from the lack of blue line hue that was formed in Mikoto's forehead to zap anyone around, but it was also because of the proximity that the two had formed and had done, an essence of wonderful family.

"Come on, let's come in!" Misuzu said, forgetting the teasing that she had done, waving her hand as the signal for Touma to follow her and her daughter to enter the hotel (or maybe palace for a commoner like Kamijou Touma). He took his step, and without him knowing why, as though he was really cursed by the God from heaven above, or maybe blessed by devils from hell below, he stepped on the slippery puddle which appeared to be oh so isolated that it was almost located in an individual's blind spot. The puddle didn't miss its chance to cause Touma's fall, as his body began to lose its equilibrium, tumbling down backwards to the pavement beneath with a loud thud. His head made its inaugural 'contact' to the pavement, with a painful crush that made the two hazel eyed females that watch the scene winced at the sight.

The said spiky haired guy winced in pain dramatically, as though there was no luck that ever surrounded him until now (it was the fact, by the way). Still, in his lying state, he massaged his head as the only medicine that he could use, and a another groan of pain could be heard from his mouth. Regardless every physical strength that he had, the only thing he could do was just lamenting his misfortune, as his strength couldn't defeat any power beyond physical one. Unluckily, misfortune, being something that Kamijou Touma really hated, was something that beyond his grasp.

Mikoto Misaka sighed as an amount of water vapor began joining itself with the air that surrounded them. It appeared that she really wanted to laugh out loud, something that could be seen from her vague giggle and amused face. Nevetheless, her pride and dignity didn't allow her to, as being very cheerful and loud in public was not her style, let alone, the previous shout that she had made had caused a sort of embarassment in her heart. She approached Touma slowly, clearing her throat and began speaking. "You dummy, always do stupid..."

And that was the end of her words.

Without her knowing why, as though she had been infected by misfortune by a man called Kamijou Touma, she stepped on a slippery part of the pavement which was so vivid that it almost needed all her ability to see to acknowledge its existence. Following the spiky haired guy just now, the hazel haired girl fell with a shriek of surprise from her mouth that adorned the atmosphere. A softer thud could be heard, and Misaka Mikoto didn't know whether she fell to the heaven or to the hell of the earth.

She fell to Kamijou Touma's body, which was surprisingly so warm despite of his rough figure. Her forehead made a contact to Touma's forehead, with the company of dilating pupils that the two had done. Regardless the fact that Misaka Mikoto was one of the strongest espers in the world, she lost her ability to move, as her brain and body took opposite sides, fighting against each other. Her muscle began becoming numb, as though the contact with a certain spiky haired guy was a stimulation for her body to do so, not to be forgotten, the slight reddish hue that began taking its place in her cheeks. Somehow, she couldn't hear anything, she couldn't see anything. What she knew, what she saw, what she acknowledged, what she felt, and what she heard was only placed in a circle space that could only fit for two people.

And as for the reality, for she knew that there was no such utopia in this world, she suddenly realized what situation she was in, reacting with the only thing that she could do.

A blue line of elecricity was formed above her head after a quite time of absence, glowing brightly as its hue began raising shiver to Touma's skin. And then, without any moment of thinking and warning, Mikoto unleashed the electricity to the pitiful individual beneath her, with her shout that accompanied the famous sound of electricity.

"Idiiiiooooottttttt!"

Kamijou Touma's legs and arms, excluding his right hand which was not infected by the electricity, thanks to his imagine breaker, jerked upwards constantly because of the sudden electricity that penetrated his body. All parts of his body, excluding his right hand, was covered by the electricity that had become Mikoto's pride and ability, widening his eyes out of shock, releasing a shriek of pain in process. Then, for another two seconds, his left arm and both of his legs fell to the cold pavement beneath, with a softer thud, charred completely in dismay as bruises and black color could be seen from his newly cleaned clothes. His hair was messier than ever, with the expression of a man who accepted death after a great amount of pain.

Nevertheless, even though everybody could sure that his brain couldn't work properly for a moment, a phrase, something that had become his habit from his youth could be heard weakly from his mouth.

"Such misfortune."

Misuzu sweat dropped, watching the scene with an amused face. She sighed, looking the antique that her daughter had done, and somehow, she could know, that Kamijou Touma was not her first victim. Then, she started walking again nonchalantly, not forgetting the words that she should tell.

"Come on, you two should go to school right? Thirty minutes more..."

The two teenagers showed a surprise face, fully forgetting the task that they must do as the little scene that occurred just now was a catalyst to forget everything. They stood up and followed, and everybody must be confused, seeing the regeneration that the spiky haired guy had done. They entered the hotel's lobby, leaving a little trace of the electricity in the air, with the memorial puddle which appeared to be messier, as the only hint of the bond of trust and friendship in their own way between the two teenagers.

* * *

><p>Shirai Kuroko opened her eyes finally.<p>

Well, it was not like that she suffered a great injury that would cause her own death. Nevertheless, she woke up much later rather than Mikoto because of the fact that Judgement's works were extremely abundant in the recent two weeks and the incident that happened three days ago was the peak of her tiredness, let alone, she must face a number of Skill-Out's members and she was defeated shamefully. It was coherent that Shirai Kuroko woke up much later after Misaka. She didn't procrastinate her awakening, but it was just that her petite body had its own limit, and even though she didn't like it, she must take a rest.

The first thing that she saw after she woke up was the white hospital's ceiling which appeared to be far different than the dark alley that she remembered before. Not letting any moment to slip, she started to sit on the cozy bed that the hospital had provided; massaging her sore head as the continuous slumber had created some amount of headache, for her brain must do some adjustments with the sudden activity. With a little glance around the peripheral sight, she could tell that she was in a hospital, with odor of drugs and medicines which appeared to be timeless, and a red color of setting sun that had been waiting for her to wake up. She could feel that her hair was not tied in the usual pigtail, by a tingling feeling of fluttering thing that made its contact with her back as the breeze entered the room. A hospital gown also was the one which covered her body.

"How long have I slept?" she said to herself.

"Two days already huh? Geezzz… she takes a long time to wake up."

Those words suddenly came to Kuroko's ears vaguely, infiltrating her eardrums as her brain interpreted the voice that she knew. Then, she could hear a faint sound of someone's coming, or maybe several people coming, something that could be heard by the several quick steps which appeared to be different in weight and style. After that, she could see shadows of divers people from the door, and with that, the door swung open, revealing the individuals that were talking about her until just now.

Misaka Mikoto, Saten Ruiko, and Uiharu Kazari entered the room where Kuroko stayed, with their respective uniforms which announced their homing from the school. A bucket of fruits could be seen on Uiharu's hands, which appeared to be so full that it almost demanded anyone's astonishment for her steady state. Mikoto's eyes were the first that took its place on Kuroko's opened eyes. She smiled, and began speaking.

"Look, she has wakened up!" Mikoto cheered, pointing her forefinger at the certain teleporter. And with those words, the population of the room appeared to increase itself, and Kuroko could see Saten's grinning face at her, and Uiharu's teary eyes. Perhaps, among her friends, Uiharu was the most maudlin one, an individual who couldn't bear the sight of romantic film rigidly, and also the one who couldn't bear to see her friend stayed in the hospital with closed eyes, without knowing when would the said friend wake up.

Uiharu threw herself at the teleporter, her comrade, to be precised, burying herself on Kuroko's shoulder as she started sobbing hard, showed by a volume of liquid that drenched her cheeks. The sudden embrace made Kuroko widened her eyes swiftly, as the abrupt contact with her was something unexpected. The lack of words that Uiharu released could only mean that she was so happy and she was covered by joy, and she couldn't even think of any words that could describe her feeling now, as the joy was so high that there was no any human's words that could describe it. Nevertheless, disregarding the fact that Uiharu was mushy or what, it somehow warmed her heart, knowing that there would be always someone who cared about her. Not only Uiharu, Misaka and Saten's affectionate face toward her could mean so much for her.

"I'm okay, Uiharu," Kuroko said, with a smile that would make someone accidentally closed his or her eyes, knowing something that warmed her heart with the equivalence of nothing. She rubbed Uiharu's back, trying to comfort her. "Thanks, Uiharu."

Misaka Mikoto and Saten Ruiko could only smiled at each other, fully knowing that everyone was all right at the end of the time, and the bond of their friendship would always be immutable and ageless, with nothing except death itself could separate them. Although they didn't show their affection through hugging or something like that, but they were thoroughly relieved of the nice condition of an individual called Shirai Kuroko, and they knew, that Shirai acknowledged that too.

Nonetheless, the joyful scene couldn't last long.

"Umm... Kuroko?" Misaka started, clearing her throat as though something blocked it, impeding her from saying anymore words. "I need to tell you something," she continued.

"What is it Onee-sama? What could I do to help you?" Kuroko said with hopeful eyes, releasing Uiharu's hug as she looked at her in a concern way. Everybody could swear that two orbs of seraph began forming themselves in Kuroko's black circles of eyes, showing a certain, yet so peculiar expression that only she could know what was the meaning. Shirai Kuroko's imaginative mind began wandering elsewhere. She imagined herself in dress and Misaka in tuxedo, having a romantic dinner in a French Restaurant, facing each other with dreamy looks, and Misaka...

"Well..."

* * *

><p>The hospital's garden, which was just located outside the hospital was one of the most beautiful landmarks that could refresh every brain of people who were under pressure. The beauty of setting sun adorned the garden with its red hue, which also reflected the light to the sky above, with the color which couldn't be resembled by any other human's works. Birds could be seen, flying in the sky as they began returning to their nest, with the chirping sound as though they were saying their respective good bye to the sun. The sun itself didn't seem to intend to die in a particular manner, as its beauty and warmth were something that everyone dreamed of, creating a scenery which was rare to be seen in autumn. The calm breeze began blowing gently, caressing the perennial trees and bushes in glee, bringing the odor of ageless trees and leaves.<p>

A certain frog faced doctor sat on a wooden bench whose color could resemble the color of the sun, enjoying the warmth which was emanated by the setting sun, relishing every comfort that he could get from the gift of heaven's sun. He was wearing the usual white coat which hid his shirt, and a satisfied expression could be seen from his face, which was smiling brightly as though his face was really shining, relaxing every muscle that he had peacefully.

He was doing great from the dawn to the dewfall, and that time was the only time when he could relax a bit, and what he had chosen was right. Watching the scenery of the setting sun, as the sun penetrated the earth with its red tint was something relaxing and enjoyable, a good change from the smell of drugs and medicines which could drive him crazy eventually. No matter how glad he was to be a doctor, but still, he was a human being. Doing the same job from the morning until now; he needed some changes, just like that.

Nevertheless, being a good doctor for years as he would always be, a thought of a certain patient kept coming to his mind, filling a little part of his with the patient's health. The patient was Shirai Kuroko, a middle school girl who was taken to the hospital just two days ago. Indeed, she had been cured completely by him, as his prowess in healing people was something that he could have a pride of. Nevertheless, still, as long as the patient couldn't do the activities perfectly and fluently, it could only mean that the patient was still in his responsibility, and as a professional doctor, he would take care of her completely.

But for the time being, he decided to leave everything behind momentarily, just focusing himself to the sun which was setting in his sight, enjoying the warmth and the silence that could relieve any hectic day. It was very peaceful, very silent, very timeless, and extremely enjoyable, something that he would always love from the sun. The sound of the garden was the only things that could be heard, together with the sound of the chirping birds above, with the perimeter that was not bothered by the human's creation at all.

It was destroyed eventually, for there was no any real utopia in the world.

"Oneeee-saaammmaaaa! How could you... with that... primateeeeee?"

That shout infiltrated the doctor's ears with the equivalence of a thousand lightning spears of ice, crushing his eardrums as he jerked to the side because of the impact of the sound. He winced slightly in agony, as the sound wave was unreasonably loud that he was confused why didn't he lose his ability to hear. He massaged his ears for a slight treatment, then looked upwards, to the window that released the previous sound.

A blue line hue of electricity could be seen from the window, spreading itself around the perimeter with its hue. The blue light that the eletricity had caused somehow blinded his eyes slightly, and then, for a fraction of seconds, the light dissipated, leaving nothing but a little smoke that exited the window.

The doctor sighed, coming back to his previous figure, staring at the setting sun which embodied the end of the day, and somehow he could know, that his patient called Shirai Kuroko would stay in the hospital longer than he expected.

* * *

><p>Okay, let's see.<p>

Stopping the Neccessarius from constantly erasing a blue haired nun's memory, saving a certain shrine girl from a Roman Catholic magician's grasp, helping a certain hazel haired girl from her agony of seeing her clones being massacred, in process, saving the life of more than nine thousand clones, saving his father from being killed by a certain archangel, saving a certain hazel haired girl again from being killed by an aztec magician, saving an embodiment of AIM manifestastion from being killed by a Gothic magician, saving nuns, whether they were from Neccessarius or Roman Catholic Church, saving the mother of a certain Railgun from Skill-out, saving Academy City again from the large invansions from three members of God's right seat, were things that an individual called Kamijou Touma had done in the past, and looking at the misfortune that would always overwhelm him, it was most likely that the number of 'saving' would increase. He was a unique human, to be precised. His reluctance of being dragged to a calamity would only drag him deeper, and him, being a chivalrous person just like he would always be, he would solve the problem, regardless the condition of his body, and his life.

Nevertheless, who was he? Only a high school student, and nothing was more.

Kamijou Touma sighed in defeat after he had read the list of things that his teacher, or Tsukuyomi Komoe had given to him. There were too many points that he must do, not only because of his absence in the class for two days, but also because of his idiot record that would be difficult to be defeated. The list was just like this : Hormon mechanism, the importance of thermodynamics for pyrokinesis, the theory of finding another element and the benefit of it, two pages summary for a Shakespeare writing that he liked (and who the hell was Shakespeare?), your hypothesis of social deviation and grouped it in three types, the drawing of an architectural building in two blind spot, and the last, but not the least, your opinion of the effect of AIM field around usual people, the negative and positive sides. These abundant tasks, and he must finish it all in two days. Was he hated by the world or something?

He was sitting on the chair that faced the dining table at the front. The room which Misaka Misuzu rented was extremely large and luxurious. Compared to his previous dormitory, this room was three times larger, with space which was too wide for two people. Imagine a VIP room from a five star hotel, this room was three times greater than that. Not only the size, the luxury that the hotel provided was also... blinding for commoner's eyes like him. High quality furniture, plasma television, chandelier, air conditioner, play station 3 and Xbox, laptop, printer, with other accessories, refrigerator, majestic kitchen set, just everything were placed in that room, trying to gladden anyone who inhibited the space. He remembered that his mouth opened widely and he was put in a loss of words when he saw a room which was so... shiny.

Nevertheless, it didn't omit the fact that he must do his homework.

It was seventh o'clock already and Misaka Mikoto, his roommate for two weeks hadn't appeared yet. It was not like that she was so special to him or something (even though he started thinking about that probability), but he was a little bit worried about the condition of the Railgun. That last incident was something big and massive, and he really didn't want to see Mikoto in that state again. Not only because of her scary blue wings that were ready to destroy everything, but also, her void expression; and expression that said that she was nothing in this world, so much different than Mikoto Misaka that he had known.

The paper was scattered in a messy way on the dining table in front of him. A plastic bag could be seen on the table, as a different thing that was easy to be differentiated. Two cheese burgers were located inside it, as the meal that Touma bought for him and Mikoto. He knew that the great amount of homework would make the probability to eat in the restaurant below impossible, let alone, the price that the manager of the restaurant had set had too many zeros for a commoner like him. He also bought one for Mikoto, for he knew that she should be hungry too, and it was likely that as Mikoto's roommate, he also had a responsibility to take care of her.

The chill that the air conditioner had provided didn't seem to be able to freeze Touma's hot head, as he started thinking about the mechanism about hormon that he must know, with an amount of smoke which appeared to take its place above his head. His expression was awful, with a wrinkled forehead that showed his difficulty to understand the material that he read. A half of pencil was located inside his mouth as he chewed it, together with the company of his continuous scratch to his hair. He had thought about it for two hours and it was night already, and he still didn't know anything about the mechanism of thyroid gland that produced thyroxine.

The door of the room swung open, revealing the figure of a certain hazel haired Railgun that was standing with her usual winter-autumn Tokiwadai Middle School's uniform. She looked somehow tired and starving, and she appeared to have just done something tiresome for a quality of time. When she looked at Touma's eyes, a red hue could be seen on her cheeks, burning her slightly, and a she began shouting again at him.

"What are you doing here?" she shouted, as if Kamijou Touma was an invader that tried to sneak in to her room, simply forgetting the fact that the said spiky haired guy was her room mate for two weeks. Touma stared at her blankly, not knowing what to say, for she should have known that Touma would live with her. Her shout could only mean four things. First, the said Railgun was stupid, and it was likely improbable, for her knowledge was even greater than Touma. Second, the said hazel haired girl was just pretending. Third, the said hazel eyed girl forgot that she lived with him, and the forth, Misaka Mikoto didn't want to live with him.

Touma Kamijou just sighed.

"I live with you, remember?" Touma said nonchalantly. "What's with that shouting? Do you hate me or something?" the spiky haired guy said, even though he didn't really want to say that. It was not like that her answer would change the road he was walking on (even though it would most likely change the road), nevertheless, it was something that was released accidentally from his mouth, as he knew that his brain didn't command it. "Besides, what's with your face? Are you catching cold?"

Surprisingly, the Railgun out of the blue lowered her head, together with the company of the reddening of cheeks which appeared to be more intense. She somehow relaxed a little bit, but with those cheeks which could resemble a fresh tomato, she was in an equivalence with a gentle kitten that time. She appeared to try avoiding eye contact with Touma, which raised his eyebrow in astonishment and confusion, for he rarely saw Misaka Mikoto in that state. Both of her forefingers moved, bumping at each other gently in front of her chest as she began speaking.

"No... it's not like that... I hate you or something ...ummm..." Mikoto said, suddenly finding it hard to speak one more word, as each words appeared to be more and more awkward in her point of view. She could feel that her cheeks became hot, and she couldn't slow her heart down, which was thumping loudly and fast. "Besides... ummm... I'm okay," she stuttered continuously.

Touma Kamijou sighed again. He really didn't understand her. For a fraction of seconds, she appeared to be as hot-headed and stubborn as she usually was, but for another fraction seconds, she appeared to be a gently kitten, which was trying to walk for the first time. Just what's with the sudden change of mood?

"Whatever," Touma ended the awkward conversation, something that Mikoto needed the most. "Just come in and take a rest. You seemed tired, anything wrong?" he said, giving full concentration to the hazel haired girl who was standing at the door, ignoring his works which appeared to be piling up high.

Mikoto blushed again, then, she shook her head hard, as though she was trying to remove any traces of red hue on her cheeks, which she did successfully. She closed the door behind her gently and began replying Touma's words with a much lower tune.

"I'm okay, it was just that stupid Kuroko" she said. "When I told her that I stayed with you, she did nothing but barking at me and cursing you. So I decided to give her some electric therapy and somehow, it made me so tired. It looks like that my health was not in a good shape," Mikoto replied, taking a seat on the opposite side of Touma. "By the way, what are you doing?"

"Homewok," he said nonchalantly, surveying the paper that he had read countless times, with nothing came to his brain as a certain knowledge. "You told Shirai-san that I stayed with you?" Touma asked.

"Yes, why?"

"Nothing," Touma answered swiftly, even though he must admit, that his thought was surrounded by fear of being killed, or being stabbed by countless needles that Shirai Kuroko always had with her. It was a general truth that the said teleported had a certain kind of affection towards Misaka which was beyond friendship class. It was also a general truth that Shirai Kuroko hated Touma so much, with the reason that Touma would never understand, as his dense mind kept blocking him from knowing the truth. Nevertheless, he could know that he was in a trouble, a very bad trouble. "You looked hungry, cheese burgers? Not a fancy one, of course," Touma said, taking a cheese burger from a plastic bag and began offering it to Mikoto.

Mikoto raised her eyebrow slightly, then she snorted. "Offering a girl a cheese burger? Don't you have any better meals or something?" she said, sighing, together with the company of closing eyes that she did accidentally.

"I'm not a rich guy like a you, princess. Besides, eat anything as long as you were full with it, right? It won't give you heart attack of something," Touma answered, with his eyes were still in the contact with the paper. It was not like that he was impolite or something, but he must finish the task as soon as possible and hopefully, Mikoto didn't mind.

"Oy, look at the one you are talking to, dummy. Can't you give a little focus to me? Are you trying to be a cool looking one or something?" Mikoto said, resting her head on her palm as her arms became the one who supported it. She sighed again, for only God knew how many times.

"Okay," Touma said, facing her with the utmost attention to her, that made her raised her eyebrow in confusion. Then, he took the cheese burger with both of his hands and bowed his head, with the equivalence of facing a queen. "So princess, this insignificant Kamijou Touma hereby offers you a cheese burger, would you mind taking it?"

Mikoto sweat dropped. "No, thanks, I'm not hungry," she answered.

That was the only time when she could deny her current state.

Her stomach growled, as its sound appeared to echo in the fancy room which suddenly became silent, covering the perimeter with its sound as the only thing that could be heard clearly, showing the hungry state that she was in, even though she hated to admit it. Blush began forming itself again in her cheeks, and she was mortified again in this room. She indeed hadn't eaten yet, but must it be revealed like this?

"You surely are starving," Touma said, breaking the ice that had covered the atmosphere slightly with an amused smile. Girls really were a prideful creature. Misaka Mikoto was a good example for that. Indeed, she was the type that couldn't be honest to herself (or at least it was what Misaka Imouto said in the underground mall), but couldn't she be more... realistic? She wouldn't be okay if she kept her pride as her priority, disregarding the condition of her stomach. "Just take it now, or I'll be sad," he continued.

"T-t-t-thanks," Mikoto stuttered, but at least she managed to take the cheese burger from Touma's hands, unwrapping the plastic and began chewing it silently, trying not to make any embarassing noise that she had done countless times this day. Then, they started doing their own activity.

As the silence emerged, the invisible nocturnal calm breeze began entering the room from the opened window which appeared to be forgotten, bringing the odor of exterior space outside the window. The calm breeze caressed Mikoto's and Touma's skin as it passed their bodies. As if the breeze was grateful for their existences, the breeze kept scrolling around their skin, which was replied by the enjoyable aura that the two emanated, as if they were able to communicate with the tranquil breeze since they were in their mother's womb.

"What are you studying?" Mikoto said.

"Hormon mechanism, to be precised, thyroxine," Touma answered nonchalantly, enjoying the calm breeze that infiltrated the room before with a somehow pleased expression. As the calm breeze bathed the two with its enjoyable chill, he continued his reading.

"Oh, thyroxine, something that almost everyone failed at," Mikoto said, still, with a half eaten cheese burger on her hand. She folded her legs and began taking another crunch to the cheese burger.

"Huuh? What do you mean?" Touma said, starting to give his attention to the said Railgun. Her answer was unexpected, and for some reasons, it was as if that she knew and she had learned anything about hormon.

The breeze answered with some enjoyable caressed that had become its job.

"Say, do you know anything about negative feedback inhibition?" Mikoto asked, stopping herself from another bite of hamburger which satisfied her stomach most, as the delicacy of the burgers kept her brain to work greatly, and her stomach shouted in glory for the meals that it needed.

"Negative... what did you say?" Touma asked, fully aware that his brain never heard such thing.

The calm breeze kept scrolling around their bodies, covering them with chilly, yet peaceful atmosphere that somehow could relieve the burden from yesterday, fully happy for the friendly conversation that the two teenagers had made.

"I'll explain it to you, let's consider this as the payback for cheese burger," Mikoto said as her lip curved upwards, forming a knowing smirk that Touma surely had seen from Tsukuyomi Komoe when she started explaining his question. "As you should know, that the thyroxine is made by thyroid gland, nevertheless, the function of thyroid gland is controlled by anterior part of pituitary gland. The anterior pituitary gland secreted thyroid-stimulating hormone, as the one that stimulate the formation of thyroxine. Anterior pituitary gland itself was not an independent gland, as its mechanism was controlled by other thing," she explained fluently, as it she had memorized it all in her brain, much to Touma's bewilderment.

"Other thing?" he asked, giving his full attention to the clever individual in front of him now.

"It was hypothalamus," Mikoto answered swiftly, fully forgetting the cheese burger that she held. " The hypothalamus, as one of the example of a neuron that secreted hormone, secreted thyrothropin releasing hormone, which stimulated the formation of thyroid stimulating hormone," she answered.

"So we could say that hypothalamus is the source of every hormone, right?" he said, as his brain tried to process Mikoto's words with all its might. He was really irritated to see a middle school girl like her could defeat a high school student, but now, he had no choice but to listen carefully.

"It's not so true. First, there are other hormones that are not controlled by hypothalamus, and second, the production of thyrotropin releasing hormone was stimulated by negative feedback inhibition," she explained.

"What is negative feedback inhibition?"

"It means the formation the thyroxine inhibits the formation of thyrotropin. If the concentration of the thyroxine was too low, then, the hypothalamus will produce thyrothropin which in process, will produce thyroid stimulating hormone, and it will stimulate the formation of thyroxine. Then, the concentration of the thyroxine in the blood could be maintained," she answered, with further example for Touma to understand.

"You really are a smart girl, a damn brilliant one," Touma said, swallowing all the knowledges that the hazel haired girl gave to him with an opened eyes, fully knowing that his knowledge was inferior compared to hers. It was a reality, and he couldn't deny it.

The breeze agreed, giving more caress to Mikoto's skin as it was happy to be with her, fully congratulating the individual who helped others in education.

"Thanks then," Mikoto said, giving her prideful smirk to Touma as she managed to explain everything briefly and perfectly, fully knowing that the mechanism of hormones was not something that could be understood by just a little scanning to the text book. She continued her chew, and without her knowing, an amount of crumb could be seen around her lip.

Touma smirked, seeing the unlady like behavior that the individual in front of him had performed completely. He took a handkerchief which took its residence in Touma's pocket, and with that, he moved forward, approaching Mikoto, then what he did was far unexpected than anything.

"You should be neater when you were eating, Misaka," he said, wiping the crumb from Mikoto's lips with the a certain gentleness as if he was treating a newborn baby. He just thought that at least it was something that he could do to take care of her, for he had no any convoluted or ulterior motive behind doing that. Their heads were only separated by two inches space, so much close as the proximity began overwhelming them. Somehow, Mikoto didn't move, as her surprise and shock covered all parts of her brain which inhibited herself from moving, with only a slight tint of red that began forming in her cheeks. Nevertheless, she stayed silent as if it was something that had been done countless times, and she didn't even mind with it.

The breeze danced in happiness, as if all the glory could be given to its magical secret which somehow could strengthen the bond between the two individuals that hadn't yet opened their deepest hearts. Afterwards, the breeze stopped blowing. Every word, every reflection, and every secret that had been done with the company of the breeze had gone.

What was remained was serenity.

**A/N: I planned to update this weekly, so please pray for me for my luck. I hoped this story could give you good comfort and enjoyment. O right, You readers could also request a story to me, so, don't afraid to give a private message!_  
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	5. The Shooting Star

**Guys, here comes the new chapter! And thanks for being with me until now!  
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**Chapter 5: The Shooting Star**

As the world grew, the environment grew; the creatures developed, and humans, as one of the creatures that were blessed the most by God, also developed. Human's history was long, and it needed more than a hundred brains to comprehend the history of humans, the development, and the growth of humans. What we knew now was that humans were the greatest asset that the world had, for their ability to improve and to develop was the best. Science was one of the evidences of development that existed in the world, and from the science, technology was invented, as an application of what humans heard, what humans observed, what humans saw, what humans comprehended, and also, what humans needed. Technology was the creation of humans and humans would always walk alongside technology itself, forming a path of light where the two always took their presences, as one of the friends that humans would depend on. No matter how many times a group of people said that they hated technology, they would always be surrounded by technology, whether it was just a simple pulley to take water from a well or a vehicle that could take you to the corners of the world.

Nevertheless, humans were still, a human; an entity whose class and ability were much lower than the original one who created them. With the fact and reality that humans would always deny, somehow, it would result a thought which stated that in the current space and time, only two things that were infinite: the universe and human stupidity. Human stupidity would always exist, for their lack of ability to explain the world would always be in place. An old once said that the world could be differentiated into four: things that couldn't move, visible things that could move in the world, invisible things in the world, and things that could move in another world. We could take an example of things that couldn't move: a stone. There were a lot of stones in the world, how could a human explain them all? If an individual couldn't even explain all the stones in the world how could they comprehend the world? How could they deny their stupidity?

Even with the incapability to know and to comprehend the simplest things that couldn't move, but still, humans didn't give up to know something which was higher than the simplest things. That somehow created a thought that humans were really stupid, for their arrogance drove them to try learning something which was beyond their capability, as curiosity would always overwhelm them, and with that, their eagerness to know would always be the first priority. It was the invisible things in the world that couldn't be explained by any science and technology, for their movement could be considered to have equivalence with a maze, and their motion, their destination, would always differ from what human had thought. It created astonishment, yet also admiration in a human's mind, soul, and body, for its unexpected occurrence and goal that would always take place, as though it had known everything from the first time it took its presence in the world. It could be a gift, but also a curse, so much more than a simple message to your friends and comrades, so much more than a simple pride that you would have from your success.

It was destiny.

Humans always wondered about destiny, the meaning of destiny, the creativity of destiny, or just how the destiny worked. Nevertheless, until the end of time, destiny would always be unreachable for human to know, as the sky for its existence in the world, and with that, the imperfection would always there, as something that a human would always want to achieve, creating a certain purpose of life to know something. It was said that the destiny could be understood by knowing yourself, your simple self, and somehow, it created various thought about destiny, and because of that, the destiny would always be a mystery, so much more than a haunted house in the park, so much more than any Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's novels that had been read.

Destiny could turn the expected to be unexpected. It was the maze of the world, with convoluted corridors which were more complicated than your own brain. Destiny could lead someone to things that he or she really wanted, or maybe, he or she disliked. Destiny was hard to be changed, as its presence would always abide. It was the invisible things that would never be visible in human's sore eyes. It was the creation of human's thought for their life in the world. It was destiny, which would make two people in different gender to join their hands together in a bond of marriage even though they were separated by distance, tradition, and custom. It was destiny, which would make a lost son or daughter met their parents again after three years of waiting. It was destiny, which would make someone to know something that he or she shouldn't know, and with that, he or she would always help others with the knowledge that he or she shouldn't originally know.

It was also destiny, which made the leader of Skill-Out that attacked a certain hazel haired girl to be one of the GROUP's underlings. It was the destiny of all.

* * *

><p>The Strange, a place within district 10, was originally the same with other districts in Academy City. Wind turbines and cleaning robots decorated the area, with some occasional students who made their way through the road, with their respective schools as their destination. Nevertheless, the lack of care towards the district had eventually degraded the area into further disrepair and trash. The remnants of cleaning robots and wind turbines could be seen around the corner, with high amount of dust and dirt that adorned the city, as the proof of lack of maintenance to the said district. With that, the number of crossing students were changed with several delinquents that could be seen around the peripheral sight, with their crude expression which appeared to be timeless on their faces, chatting with each other and laughing with each other. They appeared to enjoy themselves so much, ignoring the fact that the place they were in was improper.<p>

Even though The Strange could be considered as an urban decay and home to no one, the place was still crowded by a bunch of level 0 espers who didn't manage to get any ability in Academy City. For them, that place was home, as the only place where they could have acquaintances who knew their pain grief, and also regret, for not being able to get any skill that they really wanted. It was a place where they could be accepted by each other, interacted freely with each other, as ability was not the measurement for them to communicate, and to have fun. It was their home, it was their palace, and it was their heaven in the earth, forming a renowned group called Skill-Out.

It was midnight already, but the population of level 0 espers and delinquents had not decreased. Under the enlightenment of the starry sky, they appeared to have their own fun so much. It was indeed true that the number of Skill-Out's members had decreased drastically after the Big Spider incident, and decreased again after Hamazura Shiage had left, but from a little glance of it, it didn't seem so. The lack of streetlights and lamps that should become the only source of light and vision for people didn't make them to give up from their intention to hang out around. They were there, chatting and laughing as usual, and the stars above appeared to help them gathering a comfortable atmosphere, as a sight that was rare to be found in autumn. The sky seemed so black, and the stars appeared so bright, creating a certain contrast that was beautiful to be seen.

Except for a certain square faced guy, of course…

Located far at one corner of The Strange, shadowed by an obsolete shack that appeared to be so dirty and strange, a certain leader of Skill-Out was sitting on one of the unused wheels that were piling up high. His expression didn't resemble any of his comrade's faces that were all so cheerful and happy, but rather, his expression showed a great amount of fear, concern, and hatred even though it was somehow masked by his crude face and muscular body. He was still wearing his usual clothes, as though they were a certain uniform and wearing them was compulsion; a light black jacket with black pants. Unbeknownst to his comrades and to the starry sky, his mind wandered everywhere, thinking about the incident that happened back then.

Everything was not according to his plan back then, with the proof of his other injured friends that were still stuck in the hospital until now, and also, his own escape from the place, which had become another event full of calamity back then, which had made him to be covered with shame. He was a leader, and he supposed to do everything that he wanted well. Indeed, his comrades didn't show any disrespect after the said incident, but still, the shameful feeling that he had still overwhelmed him until now and that was not the only thing that he regretted, because what he wanted was far more than that.

His vengeance couldn't be accomplished eventually. A revenge for his dearest friend that died due to an electric attack hadn't been finished yet. It was indeed true that he didn't know anything about the culprit that charred his friend and his comrades, and the culprit that caused massive black out in the city back then that blocked his friend's survival. Nevertheless, news about a certain scientific Railgun who was capable to do such things that he got a month ago consumed his brain with dark thought, overwhelming his brain with nothing but vengeance. Since then, his purpose even after Hamazura Shiage left the Skill-Out was only one, that was to give suffer to the Railgun herself, and with that, he would do anything even though he knew that he couldn't. At the end, he was chosen by the remnants of Skill-Out to be their leader, and with that, he gained more power to defeat the said Railgun.

Nevertheless, he still knew that becoming the leader of Skill-Out wasn't the same as defeating a certain scientific Railgun. Becoming the leader was just the same as reaching the ceiling in your room, while defeating the Railgun was the same as reaching the unreachable azure sky. Even a reckless person like him could know, that a confrontation with the Railgun would be the same as wasting soldiers to Goliath, and he wouldn't be able to do anything with his power, even though he took pride in his prowess in fighting.

It was when he knew the existence of GROUP.

With that reality that always surrounded his brain, he finally decided to join himself with the GROUP, an underground organization that took part in several dirty jobs for Academy City. GROUP offered him a way and a path for his grudge, or at least it was what they said. Unbeknownst to his comrades, he kept giving GROUP endless informations about the development and growth of the remnants of Skill-Out, and in process, he also took part in avoiding another comeback of Skill-Out to the public. To be honest, he sold himself and his comrades, for the sake of his revenge. It was not like that GROUP was his favorite band or something that he loved the most, because actually, he didn't like to be bound with an underground organization, moreover, an organization that kept telling him of what to do, as though they were the boss around or something. He and the rest of Skill-Out's members were free people, so why must they be controlled by them? For him, for the leader of Skill-Out, it was easy, for the sake of vengeance.

Then, he received a tiny machine called 'Capacity Down' from GROUP.

When he first saw the machine that had a certain capability to block the espers from using their power with sound wave in one corner of The Strange, what he saw was only enlightenment, with a sadistic expression that adorned his face with the equivalence of an executioner. Nevertheless, the said machine was too big, and also, what was left was just the remnants of the machine, because the said machine had been destroyed in Big Spider incident, or at least it was what his comrades told to him. He didn't give up, with the thought of revenge that had become his own path. He took the remnants and gave it to the scientists from GROUP, saying that it was an intriguing machine for research. They glady helped him to repair it, and afterwards, the machine was as perfect as before, and the scientist even made the size became smaller and smaller, enough to be carried in his pocket. At last, his revenge could be done, because an esper without power was weaker than any gentle kitten. He began imagining himself, laughing in front of the said Railgun, jeering at her pathetic state of being nothing in this world but a trash. His vengeance was just another door that he should take a step on, and his brain couldn't be penetrated by other things other than resentment. It was as if a devil had finally possessed him, and with that he became the embodiment of devil itself.

But he should know, that even the devils could be defeated by angels.

Being a devil as if he was eager to be so, he took some of his men, the best fighter in the Skill-Out. Actually, he could take more than three guys, he was a leader after all. Nevertheless, the lack of members of Skill-Out blocked him from doing such things, because if he wanted to maintain the existence Skill-Out in Academy City, the members couldn't decrease anymore. Moreover, his underlings didn't know anything about his ulterior motive, to be said, to have a vengeance to a middle school girl. He didn't tell them without no reason. First, if he told the members about his vengeance, their respect towards him would likely be depleted, for his motive of doing anything would be only to satisfy himself, not the other members. Skill-Out, even though it couldn't be seen clearly from the outside, was composed of men and women whose bond was so strong, with only death that would separate them apart. Hamazura Shiage and his predecessor succeeded in gaining the trust of the members because the purpose that they had was for the best of the rest of Skill-Out. If he still wanted to be the leader, then, he must conceal his vengeance with his greatest ability, or else, nobody would respect him. Second, he just told that he was going to have fun around district 7, and he would just bring some men to increase the rate of 'fun'. Wouldn't it be silly if he took ten people for example? On the day, to a crowded, yet so full of security place like district 7?

And then, with the best courage that he had, he confronted Railgun.

It was very perfect back then; the Railgun appeared to have two friends: a girl and a boy. The girl appeared to have an ability, but the boy didn't, for he wasn't affected at all by 'Capacity Down'. He decided to kill the two before taking his vengeance to the Railgun, for the sorrow of losing two friends before dying was the best way to leave the world. Furthermore, at least she could know what he felt back then, or in other words, dragging her to the darkness before she died. Wasn't that good? He was just on his step of killing the boy, but what he saw after that was far more than what he could imagine.

The Railgun suddenly formed a great explosion, which was enough to throw himself and the boy, even though he was sure, that he was not a type of man that could be blown easily. Blue wings began forming themselves on her back, and what he saw in her expression could only be represented with one word: hatred. Nonetheless, the said boy didn't appear to be scared by the girl, as though what he saw was different from what the boy saw. He even threw himself to the beam of electricity that the Railgun had unleashed, protecting him from any harm. He didn't even need to be told twice to leave the place, as the hatred, resentment, and vengeance had been changed entirely by nothing but fear.

And now, he was the one who was nothing.

Indeed, his underlings still gave him the greatest respect that they could give. But for him, after the 'Capacity Down' had been broken, he didn't know anything else that could defeat Railgun. The 'Capacity Down' had been shattered into pieces because of the strong electricity that pierced it randomly, and moreover, his fear for having another confrontation with the hazel haired girl was something that gave shivers to his body, because with the power which appeared to be beyond the power of human, she could beat him without breaking a sweat.

The worst was that he had lost his purpose for vengeance.

With the last incident that had occured, he had eliminated every impossible way to defeat Railgun, and the remain was still, improbable, and even though it was improbable, it was the truth, the truth that couldn't be broken. It was the reality, it was his way of life, and it was the fact that wouldn't be bent by anything at all.

The fact that he eventually couldn't defeat Railgun.

The leader of the Skill-Out stomped the ground beneath him with the greatest force that he could release, befalling all the regrets and hatreds that he had to the ground as though the ground was the one that had done all the terrible things. The stomping sound echoed throughout the shack, penetrating the peaceful night that the moon had provided. He was very fed up to all the things that he couldn't do, even though it was what he wanted the most. As though all the bad things were not enough, there was still, a terrible thing that he must face secretly, because he had been bound with the said terrible things and he must deal with it nonetheless.

He was still, in the control of GROUP.

Sitting alone, in an obsolete shack that was oh so messy, on one of the piling wheels that were waiting for its turn to be destroyed, was not something that he liked. He would better go outside, enjoying the scenery of the moon and the stars, chatting and laughing with his comrades as though tomorrow would be a better day. Nevertheless, he couldn't; because right now, right on the point where he sat, he must meet someone, even though he was reluctant to.

He must meet a certain blond haired guy.

Out of the blue, a footstep could be heard, approaching from the outside of the shack. It was a kind of footstep that appeared to be created from someone who had seen the world twice, and with that, confidences could be heard from the light sound of footsteps, as though the person who created it could defeat all members of the Skill-Out with a single blow. For the leader of Skill-Out, it was a familiar one, for he had listened to the footsteps for more than a time. He couldn't clear his mind from being annoyed by that sound nonetheless.

A silhouette of a man could be seen in the darkness of the shack, standing at the front door, even though the said door was not present, with flashy teeth that was grinning at him with a somehow cheerful, yet mocking expression. Another steps were made as the man approached the piling wheels on which a certain square faced guy took a seat. He was a young man, with blond hair and sunglasses, which he wore even though the murky of the night could block his sight. He appeared to be wearing a school uniform; a beach shirt (he was sure that it was a free shirt) which was hidden beneath his black jacket with black pants, giving a certain similarity to other usual high school boy. Nonetheless, by a little glance to the expression that he was wearing, everybody could know, that this man was somehow... different.

The leader of Skill-Out saw him from the corner of his eyes, not wasting any energy to face him, with a facial that could only be seen from a woman who was seeing a man who raped her; a disgusted look with an expression of unknown, and somehow, a sense powerlessness and dislike could be seen vividly from his face. Rather than being a weak guy that he would hate, he chose to be a brave man in outer appearance, with the evidence of words that were flown from his mouth.

"Tsuchimikado Motoharu. What in the ninth hell are you doing here?" the leader of the Skill-Out said with mocking tune that showed so much disrespect, and with that, an aura full of tense could be sensed around the room, as the howling wind began to pick up, infiltrating the room as though it loved the existence of suspense.

The said man, or Tsuchimikado Motoharu to be precised, didn't waste his energy at first to reply, but rather, he approached the leader of the Skill-Out until he managed to form a proximity of two meters space. Then, he began speaking. "Cut the formalities. Tell me everything about your lovely group this week. This is the time for weekly report nyaaa," the guy said, demanding the weekly spoken report that had become a certain necessity for him as a GROUP's underling. The blond haired guy spoke with his usual style of talking that he found to be cute himself, even though the other who listened to it would only mock at his awkwardness. He appeared to be an adult, but still, he tried to be cute. What kind of personality that he had? Nevertheless, his tune didn't show any fear, let alone respect even though he should know that he was now facing a man that could order more than ten of his members to punch him, but still, his bravery remained unchanged, as though he had a might of ten thousand fallen soldiers.

The square faced guy snorted, spitting a portion of saliva to the ground just beside Tsuchimikado's shoes. "There is no anything important recently, brat," he said, giving total disrespect to the member of the GROUP. "Just get out of this place and never come again," he continued, without bothering to face Tsuchimikado at all. Even though he knew that his sentence couldn't be considered as a threat, but still, he really wanted to say it, for at least the blond haired guy knew that his arrival was not welcomed here.

"You should study how to lie nyaa," he said calmly, ignoring the spittle that took its place besides his shoes. Really, becoming a double agent for only God knew since when, he had studied the art of lying , and in process, knowing whether a respondent was lying or not. "I don't think that having three of your members to be taken to the hospital could be considered as an 'okay' for me. Moreover, the three of them were found in a place where the explosion incident occured around three days ago. You know something, don't you?" he said calmly, as his tune never changed from the start.

Drat, he knew.

The strong wind kept penetrating the isolated shack from the only opening that it could have, giving a certain chill as the temperature inside the shack began increasing gradually. The leader of Skill-Out could feel that his skin was now struggling to warm himself, as the light black jacket couldn't protect him from any further coldness. Moreover, the chill that existed in the space was not only because of the temperature; the atmosphere that the two had brought was also something that created a certain cold and solemn aura, adding the chill that the nature had provided. Whatever it was, the strong wind still came to and fro, or maybe it just circled around the space, unknowingly took its presence by every blow that it produced.

"I know nothing about that," the square faced guy said, not knowing what he should say. He didn't want to tell GROUP anymore again, for he didn't want any other intervention from an underground organization. Giving GROUP informations and leaking everything about Skill-Out for a month had been his own pain, and now that his objective of vengeance appeared to be impossible, he didn't have any interest again in helping GROUP.

"Don't say that nyaa," Motoharu replied calmly, with the equivalence of facing a toddler whom he met just two minutes ago. "You should know that as a member of GROUP, you should help the organization, by for example, giving us information?" he grinned this time, as his white teeth appeared to create a certain contrast around the darkness of the shack, as the only one who could be seen clearly that time.

The last sentence was the last thing that he wanted to hear from the blonde haired guy. He could feel that his brain began becoming hot fast, as though it could melt in any second. Because of that, his brain couldn't work properly anymore, as what he really wanted that time was only to kill the person who was talking to him, or maybe flaying his skin would be the best choice. It seemed that patience had long gone from his own brain, for he couldn't resist a necessity to calm himself down, being a good gentleman like others, but rather, becoming a hungry beast which was looking for its prey. Without any order from his brain, he took a dagger from his jacket's pocket, and with the speed of light itself, his hand moved swiftly towards Motoharu's neck, threatening him as he resisted an urge to kill whilst he began standing on the lifeless ground.

"I'm not a GROUP's member," he said, with every pressure that he could exert in each words, and somehow, the howling wind began increased its blowing rate, slightly fluttering his messy hair, as though it formed a blazing black flame. "I have no any intention to give you any information, so go now or die," he continued swiftly, without giving any moment for Motoharu to reply. For the leader of Skill-Out, the option 'no' was unforgiveable, resulting death to Motoharu's life, even though he knew, that the consequences would also come from GROUP itself. But what he wanted to do now, was just to evict the existence of the guy in front of him, whether by killing or by driving him out.

"Well, just say what you know or else, you will be hurt, that's all nyaa," Tsuchimikado Motoharu answered, as if the threat that was thrown to him before, together with the company of a sheath of dagger which was separated by one centimeter of space, was nothing but just a simple talk. His grinning expression was still there, as the white hue still took its existence. There was no any change of inner or outer facial that could be observed, let alone any sense of fear from him. It was as though the dagger was not there originally, or he was just stupid.

"How dare you..."

And that was the last word that could be heard from the leader's mouth.

With a certain blinding speed that only Tsuchimikado knew how to do, his right hand moved forward, plugging up the leader's mouth with so much force that was enough to make the leader winced in pain. Being an individual that had abundant experiences regarding streetfighting with the equivalence of a warrior, his instinct took his brain, and with that, Tsuchimikado Motoharu took his chance and threw a punch to the leader's abdomen, resulting another spittle to be released from the leader's mouth. Somehow, the leader lost his grip to the dagger, and because of that, Motoharu could snatch it swiftly and easily. The said blond haired guy moved swiftly to the leader's back, and with a dagger in hand, he drew the dagger to the leader's neck, threatening him with the said sharp weapon.

"Just speak. Or. Die" Motoharu said, fully ignoring his usual style of speaking, with a deadly stare that was concealed behind his sunglasses. The leader was now paralyzed, as Motoharu's words pierced his ears just like a thousand lightning spears of ice, knowing nothing about the prowess of fighting that an individual called Tsuchimikado Motoharu had. Somehow, he couldn't move, as fear began overwhelming his brain with the equivalence of nothing. He could feel that sweat began forming, and his heart was thumping so fast. His eyes were still implanted on the dagger that began making a contact to his skin, and with that, he really knew, that mistakes in talking couldn't be forgiven by the blond haired guy. He had only one option.

In an obsolete isolated shack under the majestic starry sky above, another information was leaked from the sinful mouth of a certain Skill-Out's leader, and with that, personally, he was more shameful than the lowest human in the world, with the strong wind as the bystander that would always remember.

Because human could forget, but actually, the wind was not human, and pity, the wind couldn't forget.

* * *

><p>A clear night, yet so rare in autum, had a potential to be the greatest scenery for all. Around the blackness of the sky, the countless stars appeared to be so vibrant, as though they were a certain teenager who was enjoying youth. The lack of the existence of moon appeared to increase the rate of happiness, as if they could move freely without it, dominating the clear sky as they began covering the night with every glimmer that they could produce. Every glimpse of stars drew the sky with their own characteristics, and with that variety, the sky appeared to be so full of light and joy, as though each stars were communicating to each other, regarding every message that they could give to the humans below them about the secret of peace in the world.<p>

Ignoring the beauty and majesty of the starry sky, Tsuchimikado Motoharu walked silently, leaving district 10 to his school's dormitory. His facial didn't resemble the expression of someone who had threatened a leader of Skill-Out with a dagger, but rather, his expression appeared to be full of seriousness, as his mind didn't pay any heed to the road that he was walking. It was not like that he was tired already after he had confronted the leader, for actually, he didn't have any intention to intimidate the leader by a dagger (of course, Tsuchimikado Motoharu was not that kind of man, or else, Tsuchimikado Maika wouldn't like him anymore). The leader was the one who started the ruckus, that was all.

But he didn't think at all about the intimidation that he had done successfully, for his success was something that was expected by his brain. He was only thinking about the information that he had got. He would never guess back then, that the leader of Skill-Out himself was the one who was influenced in the event, and the leader appeared to be honest and true, for the story that he had told could only be known from a man who had seen the event himself. The explosion, the electricity, even the culprit of the explosion, or to be exact, the Railgun; everything was explained clearly by the leader of the Skill-Out, and he appeared to be true. From all the major things that the leader had said, there was only two words that were still plastered clearly in Tsuchimikado's brain.

Blue wings?

Really, he would never expect that the Railgun was capable of doing that. He had known that his comrades, or a certain white haired guy who became the strongest esper in Academy City, could do such feat. He was also told that the second strongest esper, or Kakine Teitoku, was able to produce wings, or in other means, having an angelic properties, the same as Accelerator. It was said that they were 'awakened', as though the angel inside them finally reacted, giving them enough power to distort the world. But still, to think that the third greatest esper could do such thing was somehow... wow.

The leader also said about the existence of a certain spiky haired guy that he confronted. If the the Railgun, or truly, Misaka Mikoto was there, then the only spiky haired guy that she should know was only...

Let's not thinking about that.

Out of the blue, he could hear a faint sound of his cell phone ringing, as its vibrate could be sensed by his skin. The sound of phone ringing was the only one that took its presence around the midst of the night, as most of the students had come back to their respective dormitory, and moreover, it had passed the city curfew time. The howling wind that kept blowing was the only one which accompanied the sound of phone ringing. Then, he took the cell phone from his pocket, moving it towards his ears as it started making a certain contact to his ears. He then began speaking.

"Yea, who is this?" Motoharu said.

Then, a certain familiar voice, whose characteristic could only be found from someone that he knew, could be heard faintly from the phone as the sound wave penetrated Motoharu's ear drums. It was a voice which resembled the voice of an adult with so much maturity, even though Tsuchimikado Motoharu knew, that the one he was speaking to was only a fourteen years old guy, with a cigarette which appeared to be eternal in his mouth. Aside of that, the mature tune showed a little amount of fear and concern, although it was somehow concealed by the way the man spoke. Nevertheless, being a spy for the entire of his life could make Motoharu knew everything he shouldn't know, including the hidden message of tune that someone used. For further information, he didn't regret it at all.

"Tsuchimikado? This is Styl Magnus."

Somehow, Tsuchimikado Motoharu could swear that the glimmers that the stars above provided before had decreased, with the company of icy wind that began reducing its temperature, giving chill to his skin, as if even the nature could know, that another bad news would ascend again from the hell, as the gloom took most of the beauty that the nature provided.

* * *

><p>When you have arrived in Academy City, take an electric train. Even though it appeared that there were various district, you must go to the district 3 of the Academy City, a district which was specialized only for tourists and it was dedicated for their accomodation. When you have arrived at district 3, you would find that place to be full by soaring skycrapers and buildings, and most of them were hotels and plazas, with some occasional cafes and restaurants that could be seen around the peripheral sight. Then, you should find the tallest and the most fancy building in district 3, to be said, the most majestic and expensive hotel that existed in Academy City. After you had entered the lobby, moved yourself toward the lift, which took its presence at the left side of hotel's lobby. Wasting your time to determine which floor was not needed, you should just go to the highest floor of the building: the 40th floor. Then, find room number 4032, or to be precised, a VIP room which appeared to be the best room that was only provided for president. Enter the room, and you could find that the room was divided into three parts: the guest room which could be seen just after you had entered the room, the bedroom which could be seen on the left part of the guest room, and the bathroom, which was located on the right part of the room. The bedroom took the shape of a square with white hue as the one which colored the room, with the size of 7x7 meters. A chandelier could be found above your head, as the one which provided enlightenment in the room, with the presence of two large beds that could be seen at the left side of the room. At the opposite part of the bed, a table, which appeared to be dedicated for studying could be found, so much different from the dining table in the guest room. At the same part, a plasma TV, complete with playstation 3 and other games that was a little bit too modern could also be found, reedeming itself as the place and things for tourists to have so much entertainment. The furniture and painting that took their presence in the room appeared to be so expensive, carved and made by Leonardo Da Vinci himself, accompanied by technology which was created by the creativity which was beyond Thomas Alva Edison himself. The blend of technology and art was mixed in the room with the contrast that appeared to be saturated, and for everyone, it was majestic. Think about the most fancy room that you could imagine. This room was three times greater than that.<p>

Room number 4032 was used by two teenagers this time: a boy and a girl. The hazel haired girl could be seen sleeping on one of the beds in the bedroom, enjoying the cozy feeling that was provided together with the company of large space and chill that was provided by the air conditioner. The other one was a spiky haired guy, Kamijou Touma, whose condition could show a total difference with the girl. He appeared to have smoke above his head as he didn't stop scribbling on the paper that he had read for more than twice, and from the expression that resembled a depressed kid, he was not okay at all. Sitting on the chair which appeared to have been heated by his buttocks, the spiky haired guy didn't stop scratching his hair in frustation whilst occasional 'such misfortune' words could be heard from time to time. With the light from the small desk lamp that gave brightness only to the circle which Kamijou Touma was in, as if it didn't want to disturb the slumber of the girl, Touma continued writing everything to help his brain to memorize.

Kamijou Touma looked at the circular wall clock that was plastered on the clock whose hands showed the time now. It was 00.30 am; not a particular time for students to study, except for those who were bookworm or something. Nevertheless, he couldn't sleep even though his eyes and brain began to give up gradually, for the materials that he had to memorize and know were so abundant that if he didn't start studying from now, he wouldn't be able to face a certain short teacher, or else, the said teacher would cry and gave him some good quality of time in detention room. No matter how idiot the individual Kamijou Touma was, he must be able to memorize everything in two days, even though it would consume his sleeping time.

But still, he didn't know why couldn't he have a brain just like the hazel haired girl who was sleeping in the same space. He even had moved from the dining table in the guest room to the study table in the bedroom, for his brain thought that a change of atmosphere could make him processing the materials better. Nevertheless, an idiot would always be an idiot, no matter how many times he tried, idiocy would never be wiped out by the change of atmosphere and place.

Indeed, the hazel haired girl had helped him explaining the materials with her best ability, nevertheless, Misaka Mikoto seemed to be so tired and she hadn't fully recovered from the last incident. Being a chivalrous guy just like he would always be, Touma just told her to take a rest, saying that he was able to do everything. With that, the Raligun left him, with a piling paper of materials that he must memorize.

And since then, no materials ever reached his brain.

Really, Misaka Mikoto was a great individual, and a great teacher to be precised. With her way of explaining, somehow, he could memorize everything much better than before. He could find out that his brain worked in a great rate, something that he never felt before. Perhaps it was because of her great prowess of teaching; perhaps it was because of her detailed explanation; perhaps it was because of her tune that she used that sounded to be so attractive and comfortable; perhaps it was because of the aura that she emanated which resembled the aura of a friend, not a teacher; perhaps it was because of the fact he enjoyed her company so much that without her, his brain stopped functioning and he became an idiot again, once and for all.

Heh, silly.

The spiky haired guy looked at the figure of a girl who was sleeping on the opposite part of the room. She had removed her flower clip, and she was wearing a colorful pyjamas with polkadot pattern which showed her love to the childish thing (well, most of the teenage girl that Kamijou Touma knew would always wear sleeping dress), which Touma reluctantly admitted, seemed to be nice and fit to her, together with the most peaceful expression that Misaka Mikoto was having, as her lips always curved upwards, enjoying every single dream that she had to relieve the awful day, walking on the heaven side by side with the one that she trusted. Touma rarely saw Misaka in this state, for what he usually saw until now was her angry, shy, confused, sad, and serious expression, which were far different with what he was seeing now. Nevertheless, he must admit, that she appeared to be so cute and beautiful right now, so much different with the tomboyish aura that she usually emanated. It was said that the genuinity in expression in human could only be seen when she or he was sleeping, and by what Kamijou Touma was seeing, he must say that it was right.

Somehow, without him knowing why, a natural smile, a smile which was not forced at all; a smile without any influence of skeletal muscle, was formed on Kamijou Touma's face, as the peaceful scene was seen right in front of his eyes.

The smile was ruined when he faced the paper in front of him again.

Kamijou Touma was really in trouble now. His body and spirit for studying had been depleted drastically, for he couldn't memorize anything at all since the said Railgun slept. He was frustated, and the fresh air which was provided by the air conditioner didn't appear to be able to warm his hot head. Really, how could he know the mechanism of Aldosterone and parathyroxine, as the most important hormone which was present in human's body? How could he know anything about testoterone if he didn't even know the meaning of corpus callosum? How could he know the mechanism and effect of the hormone which was produced by adrenal medulla if he didn't know anything about opposite function that the hormones had? How could he know the mechanism of melanocyte if even the text book didn't provide so much source regarding the hormone?

Kamijou Touma released a low moan and dropped his head to the table, with the low thud that could be heard as his head made a contact to the table (fortunately, as if it was the first time he was blessed by fortune, Misaka didn't wake up). He closed his eyes momentarily, as though it was enough to gather energy that he really needed for now. Even though the room seemed comfortable, he was not comfortable at all, for his head blocked any comfort that the room provided, with only a little bit chill that he could feel.

He really needed to take some good amount of rest.

Nevertheless, he couldn't sleep now. He had vowed that he wouldn't sleep until he learned at least one more material. But also, he needed a little change without any materials that was forced into his head. He needed some good air. No, not the artificial air that the air conditioner provided, but else, a good air that was provided by mother nature itself, giving him the enjoyment that he really loved, a good change that he really needed.

Kamijou Touma stood up from the chair, as the chair appeared to thank him for not being heated again anymore. He stretched his arms, neck, and leg slowly, as the cracking sound of the stretched arms could be heard vaguely. He then took his black jacket from the table, wearing it for a good protection from chill for he knew that although he needed it, the outside air must be cold. The brightness of the lamp was gone as he turned it off, followed by tip-toes that he did to prevent a certain hazel haired girl from waking up, effectively continuing the silence that he had maintained from the first time he stepped on the room.

Then, he exited the room, closing the door behind, leaving Misaka Mikoto in her own slumber, as her snore was the only thing that could be heard from the peripheral area.

* * *

><p>When a low-class person started living a fancy life for sometime, his or her eyes would be particular to the expensive, majestic, and fancy things that surrounded him or her, leaving his or her previous life which was full of common things, changed with the life of rich man, which was full of nothing but majesty and grace. As though his or her hidden eyes had fluttered open, he or she would consider a private plane to be a usual bus, a VIP room in the most expensive hotel to be a usual shack, and a private maid as a usual friend. It was hilarious to know that actually, he or she would forget his or her previous life as a commoner, enjoying the life as a prince or princess, even letting everyone in the world knew about his or her capability in buying things. It was the hidden behavior of a man.<p>

Nevertheless, it appeared that Kamijou Touma's eyes hadn't fluttered open.

When he exited the room he was staying, he decided to check out the open-air swimming pool which was located on the 30th floor, considering that he didn't know what to do outside, and also, remembering that he could encounter some deliquents around this time. Moreover, his misfortune would always surround him, so, a chance of encountering some deliquents who wanted to beat him must be high. With those awful probability, he agreed to himself to go to the swimming pool, for at least he could get some fresh air. Well, a short walk wouldn't hurt, right?

What he imagined was that the swimming pool was just a usual pool. A usual square-shaped pool with some stairs to help the swimmer to get out of the pool, maybe with some occasional benches for the swimmers to take a rest and eat. Well, what would a pool have other than that?

Wrong. He should know that he was still a commoner.

The sign showed 'swimming pool', but it could't be considered as a usual pool. Maybe the words 'the miniature of watery landmark with natural beauty' would be a better choice to avoid misunderstandings from tourists. The whole floor itself was the pool. When Kamijou Touma first entered the area, his sight was greeted by a pool with natural shape, surrounded by perennial trees and bushes around with so much comfort. The pool was so big that it could resemble a pond, with the water which appeared to be so natural and clean, as if it was taken from the Baikal Lake in Russia itself. At the western side of the pool, he could see some children's playground related to water, and at the eastern side, he could see the waving water, or maybe a miniature of the sea, completed with a place to rent some surfing boards to play the said sport there. But the majesty could be seen at the center of the pool, with Touma's eyes kept plastering to it. It was a miniature of the river, which was flowing, but it was still proper for some swimmers to swim. It was a beautiful landmark, with trees and bushes surrounding the peripheral 'river', covering the area with life and coolness that was rare to be found in Academy City. The ground beneath was adorned by carved stone, adding the beauty that it had. There was a wooden bridge that made its way from the left side of the 'river' to the right side, and with the company of the showering light from the stars above, a beautiful landmark was created, something which appeared to catch every eye that took a glance at it.

Touma walked around the central part of the pool, enjoying the comfort that it had provided. Then, he stood at one side of the lake, facing the flowing water which created his own reflection, showing the purity that the water had. There was no one around, something that he really needed, as calmness and peace surrounded him with the equivalence of nothing, successfully causing the serenity that he wanted. The sound of flowing water was the only one that took its presence, signaling the existence of no one around except a certain spiky haired guy.

The gentle breeze could be sensed by him, caressing his skin which had some nostalgic feeling, as the memory of his mother's caress was flowing to Touma's brain. The landmark was too beautiful that it started making his eyes closed in peace, as if the landmark had a certain natural magic to draw him to all the dreams that he wanted. It was too hard for him to remember about the materials that he wanted to learn again anymore. What he wanted was just to be there, enjoying the scenery with ease and peace, with the one that he really loved.

And it couldn't be last forever.

Out of the blue, the sound of his cell phone destroyed the silence that had been created by the surrounding and environment, surprising Touma as he opened his eyes in a shocked expression. Then, he took the cell phone from his pocket, and moved it towards his ears. A voice that he knew could be heard, a familiar voice of his classmate with sunglasses that he must be wearing right now. As his familiar, yet awkward style reached his ears, he somehow could know that something would be wrong, because the said friend would only call him when something which was big happened.

As the conversation went, the gentle breeze continued its blow, currently unaffected by the conversation of two men via cell phone that would change everything later. The breeze was just there, accompanied Kamijou Touma with much comfort as he talked, giving him the best caress that it had to everyone in the world.

* * *

><p>"Where am I?"<p>

Misaka Mikoto was in the verge of ending her 'date' which she loved the most. She remembered that she was having fun with a certain spiky haired guy whose name she didn't want to say (all thanks to her tsundere nature), playing around the Academy City with joy and happiness, as if the bystanders who were watching them as they walked were not there, as they were protected by a barrier which could only fit for two people. The nature also supported their walk, as the sky appeared to be so bright and vibrant, with occasional gentle breeze that brought the odor from the mother nature itself. Wearing their respecetive uniforms, they were chatting happily, playing around, eating in the fast food restaurant, and holding hands, without any blush that could be seen from Mikoto's cheeks, as though what they were doing was the simplest thing in the world and it had been done habitually. They were together, from the morning to the evening, until eventually, time separated them apart, with the signal from the spiky haired boy who finally went home, just after he took Mikoto to her dormitory.

She could remember that most of the time, her smile could always be seen, adorning her face as the smile beautified every fragment of beauty that existed on Mikoto's face. It was as if that the presence of a certain spiky haired boy warmed her heart, as the aura that he emanated could embrace her with the equivalence of the embrace from God Himself. She really enjoyed her time with the spiky haired boy, as if the time was stopped and the space provided a place only for the two of them to have their fun. It was enjoyable and great, as thoroughly, she couldn't find the best word to describe her feeling, which was beyond happiness.

And in two seconds, everything had changed, just when she wanted to enter her dormitory.

Out of the blue, she could feel a great pressure which appeared to have an objection to crush her body, as if someone who hated her had arrived in Academy City, spreading hatred to everyone inside the city. Her eyes widened in surprise, as sweat began forming on her skin. She could feel that the enjoyable atmosphere was not present anymore, changed with a much hotter one, as though the blazing sun was trying to hit the earth with a scorching fire ball or something. She gulped slightly, and with that, her head turned, looking at the back part of hers, wanting to know the person who had created the said pressure.

And what she saw was worse than ever.

What she saw was no longer Academy City, but rather, a barren land where people were suffering and dying, causing tears and grief to everyone who lived there. It was as if a massive amount of dynamites had been planted in Academy City, and the explosion had occured, creating a land in which children never smiled and the star never sparkled. High above the ground, a red sky, which resembled the color of the blood could be seen, as thick grey cloud created the scenery of the hell, together with the sun which appeared to be ready to burn anyone under it. The color of the ground was red, showing its barren characteristic, which also resembled the reflection of the scary sun above. Imagine a certain hell in the world. This place was much worse than that.

The remnants of withered plants could be seen everywhere, with the black hue of stems and roots that could be seen around the peripheral sight, showing the drastic lack of care that they needed the most, scorched by the heat which was emanated from the sun. Dust and smoke could be seen everywhere, adorning the red environment as if they loved to be there, ignoring the ugliness that they had caused. Nevertheless, what Mikoto feared was much more than the environment or the plants, for what she thought was more than that.

She couldn't sense any life in the place.

It was not as if having a power which could control electricity would make her capable to sense the life by her ability. But rather, the lack of noises and sound, with the company of choking air which appeared to be lack of oxygen could explain everything. Just by taking a little glance around, everybody could know, that this was not a place for humans to live. Nevertheless, Misaka Mikoto was there, and just by thinking about that, with the sight that she really hated to see, she was scared.

Misaka Mikoto began walking around the area, shouting some words of greeting to make sure that she was no alone, even though somehow, it appeared that she was just reassuring herself, as the echo of her own voice reached her ears back. The air choked her, as the amount of oxygen was really insufficient, making one step to be similar with twenty steps. She really didn't know what happened to the Academy City, and somehow, she didn't want to know. Ruin of buildings could be seen everywhere, and the shards of glass and trash were the only things which she could see. Occasionally, she could see some blue line hue of electricity around, with the crackling sound that was too annoying to be heard. Something that accompanied an individual called Misaka Mikoto until now was the sound of her own footsteps, and no more.

Nonetheless, she kept walking and walking, hoping to find a trace of life that she needed. After some amount of tiresome walks, she finally could see a silhoutte of a person sitting on one corner of the street, resting on a broken electric pole as if it was his or her own home. Mikoto, finally acknowledging that at least she was not alone in the place, approached the person, as her expression began cheering up a little.

And the cheerful expression faded instantly.

The person was a girl; a petite girl who was blessed by old hazel color that stained her hair, with pigtails that showed her love towards the said hair style. Nevertheless, her condition was far worse than ever. Her eyes widened in fear, as though something which was shocking had hit her just like a thousand lightning, stealing the source of life that was dependent with her soul. She was wearing Tokiwadai Middle School's uniform, which was torn and bruised everywhere, with a part of leg and arm which were bent into a painful angle. Surrounding her was her own blood, bathing her as if it was her intention to be like that, as if each capillaries that were present in her body had exploded. She didn't breath, and she didn't move, not showing any sign of life as she remained lifeless, and with that, a name flew to Mikoto's brain, a name of her friend that had become her roommate.

"Kuroko?"

Mikoto's eyes widened in fear, seeing the condition of her first friend in Tokiwadai Middle School who was worse than any other corpse that she had ever seen. She knelt besides her, calling her name to the lifeless body who kept staring at her in a shocked expression; a deadly stare of a corpse which was far colder than the snow. Nevertheless, Mikoto's shout of her name was only replied by the echo that the emptiness of the city had, and because of that, without her knowing why, she began sobbing hard, as she finally lost her ability to speak again anymore.

This couldn't be happening.

A little part of her teary eyesight caught a sight of something behind Kuroko's lifeless body. She swiftly turned around, looking at the things that had caught her attention, and thus, she regretted for turning her head around. What she saw was far more awful and painful for a teenage girl like her, and she couldn't bear any urge to cry hard, shouting her grief of the city that she loved.

Around her peripheral sight was a pool of dead men that was all lying on the lifeless ground, and moreover, they even formed a certain pile of dead people that was too horrifying to be seen even by the strongest man in the world. The lake of blood was there, coloring the ground with its red hue, resembling the color of the sky above. All of their expression could be considered to be the same with Kuroko's, as if they had seen something which was extremely terrible, or as if the cause of their death was electric shock, and much to Mikoto's horror, she was alive.

Far from a distance, blocked by the thick dust that surrounded the area, Mikoto could see a silhoutte of a girl, and surrounding her, was a blue line of electricity which sparkled slightly and deadly. As Mikoto tried to stand up , she could see, that in front of the silhoutte of the girl, Mikoto could see a silhoutte of a man, who appeared to have spiky hair. The said man was seen to be sitting on the pavement, reaching for his shoulder, cornered by the silhoutte of a woman as the blue line hue suddenly solidified, taking a form of a blade. Then, she began lifting the said 'blade', and...

... she slashed it to the man.

Mikoto's eyes widened in fear, seeing the terrifying scene that blocked her ability to scream for help or else. The man's blood was spluttered everywhere, and the man's scream gave another pain to her ears, echoing throughout the area as she began trembling heavily. As if the curtain had been lifted, the dust began fading out, and with that, Mikoto could see everything clearly.

She really wanted to die because of that.

The silhouette of the man could be seen, revealing his lifeless body that was lying on the cold pavement. Among all the corpses that Misaka had ever seen, the man was the worst. Blood was spluttered everywhere, with the shocked expression that couldn't be equated by anything. His skin appeared to be flayed on some parts, revealing his flesh and blood which bathed his body. He was bruised all over, and his usual uniform had been torn everywhere, and from a little glance of him, Mikoto could know, that his body was almost split up by sharp things, but still, the struggle of the body to keep uniting themselves was too harrowing to be seen. Mikoto Misaka almost couldn't differentiate which one were the arms and legs; he was too terrible to be seen.

It appeared that Kamijou Touma didn't have any human's body again anymore.

She couldn't say anything at all, for seeing the one she loved to die in such a way would be something that she really hated. Humans had lived for more than two thousand years, but yet, Mikoto couldn't find any words which could describe her grief right now, as it was far more than everyone could imagine. It was as if death was better than everything for at least she didn't need to see anything like this.

Nevertheless, what scared her most was the woman or maybe the girl who had killed the said Kamijou Touma before. She was a girl with her age, with void expression with somehow, a slight smile which enjoyed everything that she had done. The wicked wind fluttered her short hazel hair, wearing the Tokiwadai Middle School which was flooded by blood, and from the first glance, she could know that it was not her blood. Even though she was gazing at Mikoto, it appeared that what she saw was faraway behind her, seeing something as if she was hoping of something to be there, even though it was improbable.

The girl was Misaka Mikoto herself.

Without any warning, the electricity began forming on the girl's hand, forming a blue blade of seraph whose appearance Mikoto had seen before, with the crackling sound of electricity as something which could be heard around. Then, she dashed to Mikoto, unsheathing her new-formed sword, trying to stab her. Nonetheless, Mikoto didn't retaliate or avoid her attack, for she was too surprised by everything that had happened in this place, being too idiot to acknowledge everything which she had seen in front of her eyes. With the tears that kept forming on her eyes, she kept maintaining her state, and with the glance to the face of the void girl in front of her, what the Railgun saw was darkness.

* * *

><p>An old once said that a dream would always be a dream, and a dream would never be a reality. Nevertheless, actually, the border between dream and reality were far nearer than everyone could expect. The dream was the greatest imagination and expectation that the reality had, and with that, the reality could be the same as a dream, even though the probability won't hit 100 %. The dream could be a certain embodiment of the reality, and because of that, what the reality provided would be the hidden meaning of a dream, not the dream itself.<p>

Misaka Mikoto couldn't feel the cozy bed anymore as she jerked upwards, leaving the bed beneath with two arms that supported her weight. With dilating pupils and sweat all over her body, she shot daggers at the ceiling above, as if it was something that had scared her until now. Acknowledging that the ceiling was normal, she looked to and fro, terribly scared by the existence and presence of a pool of blood around previously, and to be honest, she was trembling in fear. Afterwards, she relaxed a bit, face palming herself, trying to reassure himself as she closed her eyes deliberately.

It had been the third times she had seen dreams which were similar to this. At first, at the hospital, what the dream provided was the sound of the leader of Skill-Out who kept echoing in her ears, and now, the scene that showed herself as a bloody murderer. She vaguely remembered that in this dream, she had a nice dream before everything eventually changed, wondering her of the sudden change in dream that had occured before. Indeed, she never showed that to anyone, perfectly masked by the tomboyish and cheerful facial that she usually had, but inside, she was scared, not because of the dream actually, but because of the reality.

The reality of her status as a murderer.

Ever since the first time the leader of Skill-Out told her about everything, the awful reality that she knew only from him, she couldn't wipe out any guilty feeling from killing a person that she didn't even know accidentally. It was as though that having an ability could be a blessing or a curse, a blessing for being able to protect herself and other people, being a curse as even the esper ability like she had could kill someone. To be honest, she didn't know how to behave again, for she would see herself in a differet way now.

The presence of a certain spiky haired guy couldn't be seen. It appeared that he hadn't slept already, showed perfectly by the neat bed besides hers. It seemed that his study blocked him from any kind of rest and sleep, for the materials he must learn were so many that even Misaka Mikoto couldn't memorize all of them swiftly. Then, Mikoto rested her body again on the cozy bed beneath, trying to get a certain enjoyment as the fresh air from the air conditioner cooled her body down.

* * *

><p>Misaka Mikoto found herself in the swimming pool.<p>

Oh, no, it was not a dream again anymore. It was a reality and the fact; she was really in the swimming pool now, wearing a blue coat as her only protection from chill. It was not as if she was afraid of facing her dream again or she was having a sudden insomnia or something. It was just that the sensation that she got before from her previous dream had given her so much disturbance. Thus, she decided to take some fresh air or maybe enjoyed some stars gazing above her head, trying to cool everything down in her mind. And with that, the opened air swimming pool was the best place, for she knew from her previous stay in the hotel that the swimming pool could provide the atmosphere of nature itself.

The swimming pool was still the same: the miniature of the lake, sea, and the river with so many perennial trees and bushes around the peripheral sight, perfectly matched everything, causing the scenery of the natural river, sea, and lake. The gentle breeze could be sensed blowing around, exiting their previous concealment in the bushes, giving the odor of comfort and joy, as Misaka Mikoto enjoyed their company. The stars were all so bright, coloring the black sky with their hue as they started dancing happily around as their brightness vaguely colored the land of the earth.

Nevertheless, the corner of her eyes caught something. It was a figure of a man, who was standing at one side of the river, facing the river beneath as the water reflected his shadow. The spiky haired boy, Kamijou Touma to be precised, was seen to have a conversation via cell phone with only him knew who, with his usual winter uniform that appeared to be eternal for him. The stars vividly illuminated him as the white hue colored the circle in which he was in. He didn't appear knowing it nonetheless.

Mikoto sighed. It was as if no matter where she was going, the first man that she would meet was only Kamijou Touma. In her dreams, outside her school, in the convenient store, and even in the underground mall, Kamijou Touma would always be around. Indeed, some of the 'meeting' was also done by her deed to meet him, but for the others, they were always be an accident to meet, but still, she was happy for that.

The majesty of the stars above illuminated the two of them, forming a road of light which separated the two embodiments of youth and strength, as if the stars drew the two of them to be closer and closer. Misaka Mikoto involuntarily smiled and closed her eyes, as though the creation of nature had given her the best comfort that she needed.

She silently approached the spiky haired guy.

As she walked to the said spiky haired guy, Kamijou Touma didn't seem to notice the appearance of the hazel haired girl as he kept plastering his cell phone to his ears, with somehow, a serious expression that she rarely saw. It was as if what he was talking about was a serious matter that would change the fate of destiny he was walking on. His eyes appeared to be as sharp as they could be, and his stare was far more intense than his usual stare, informing the present Kamijou Touma who was different than ever. It was the same expression that he was wearing when he confronted her at the bridge, just before the sister's experiment. It was the same expression that she saw when he met her to help her saving her junior. It was the same expression that he was wearing when she confronted him in the middle on night, with injuries that covered his body. Somehow, she could know that something essential for him was wrong, and afterwards, he would usually put his neck slightly from the line of the death, and she hated it so much.

Just six steps before she finally reached the spiky haired guy, he hanged up his conversation, put his cell phone back to his pocket, and began staring deeply to the miniature river whose water was flowing beneath. He appeared to be deep in his thought, with the company of gentle breeze which caressed his skin only. Even though the conversation had ended, it appeared that the previous conversation had left something for him to think.

"Yo!"

Mikoto greeted her suddenly, with a somehow cheerful expression that was so contrast with her nightmare before. The said spiky haired boy appeared to be tensed a little bit, and with a little glance of him, everybody could know that he was in the verge of falling down to the water beneath. Nevertheless, he succeeded to maintain the equilibrium of his body, then, he faced Mikoto with a surprised expression implanted on his face.

"Mi-Misaka," he stuttered, facing a certain scientific Railgun. He seemed to hide something, just from the way he talked and moreover, his gesture could tell Mikoto everything about it. "Umm... good..." he started, becoming nervous all of the sudden, as the arrival of Misaka Mikoto in the swimming pool was unexpected for him. He rolled his eyes upwards, trying to find any good words from the stars above, which showered the two of them with nothing but glee. "...evening?"

Mikoto sighed. "What's with being nervous, all of the sudden?" she said, as she rested on a tree. The warmth of the tree gave her a certain enjoyment to her back, as if the hidden heart of hers cheered in glee for the contact of the mother nature that she had permitted. Without her knowing why, she sat on the said tree, touching the soft ground beneath with her tender hands that could make even a miss universe jealous of the tenderness that she had. She closed her eyes momentarily, giving more comfort to her body, and after that, she opened her eyes and began speaking again. "What are you talking about before anyway?"

Kamijou Touma gulped, as some volume of saliva came back to his body again. He started to have a certain difficulty in speaking, much to Mikoto's surprise, for Kamijou Touma was not certainly the kind of nervous man who spoke with so much doubt and shyness. He began scratching his head and avoided any kind of eye contacts to the Railgun, and with that, as if he eventually gained a fraction of courage that he needed to speak, a word began flowing from his mouth.

"Nothing..."

The hazel haired girl sighed. The answer 'nothing' would never satisfy any fragment of her brain for a hot-headed girl like Misaka Mikoto. Nevertheless, she just didn't want to press the issue any further, for she was too tired to argue with anyone again, moreover, to an individual called Kamijou Touma, whose stubborn ideal could even beat anyone in the said world. Let alone, the serenity that the nature gave was so contrast with anything like arguing or scolding, so, she would press the issue further tomorrow maybe, for she thought it would be better.

The tranquil silence surrounded them, followed by a gentle breeze around the small wood, caressing their skin for the happiness that they had for being their company, even just for a little time they provided. The stars above illuminated them with nothing but joy, with brightness of the sparkles that was beyond any imagination that a human had. The smooth wind gave another caress to the water, creating some ripples as their sound became the only one who penetrated their ears. For every artist in the world, the kind of scenery would be something that they really wanted to see, and with a little glance of it, they would started coloring their canvas with the color of life, being the embodiment of every feeling that Mikoto and Touma had.

"Oy,"

The stars began sparkling again, as its light appeared to glisten just like the pure gold, carved by the professional himself. Their sparkles seemed to encourage Misaka Mikoto to cast loose a feeling that she had; a guilty feeling for something that she did before, causing her to began gathering the said topic for only she knew why. Nevertheless, the stars were just there, giving more bravery to the said Railgun as its light shone to her.

"Yea?" Kamijou Touma's eyesbrow was raised by the sudden call from a certain scientific Railgun that was directed to him. For some reasons that only Mikoto knew why, she appeared to be so calm right now, far different than her usual habit of being loud and a 'little' bit violent towards him only.

"Am I a murderer? Do you hate me"

The brightness of the stars dimmed slightly, being honestly sad to the words that Mikoto spoke before about her guilty feeling, and somehow, it drained the power of the stars to shine above. Nevertheless, the stars kept shining, trying to give her warmth that she could only have from the affection of the stars, being the only friends for her as she walked towards another path of destiny.

Kamijou Touma closed his eyes as his lip turned upwards, forming a devil-may-care smile that Misaka Mikoto and half population of the Academy City found heart-stopping, as the gentle voice of Mikoto's, something that Touma never imagined to happen, reached his ears. Then, he began approaching the said Railgun slowly, and started speaking gently, together with gentle breeze that slightly fluttered his hair.

"It seemed that his words still left something to you, huh?" he said, approaching the hazel haired girl and began sitting beside her. There was no any blush or crimson color that could be seen on her cheeks regarding the proximity that Kamijou Touma provided, for she just tried to enjoy the warmth that the spiky haired boy had emanated, being something that heated up her cold heart which was full of nothing but guilt and regret.

"You know, an old once said that when a person killed someone with a purpose, with sadistic grin adorned his or her face, his or her soul will be gone, and his or her genuine smile would be gone from his or her face," Kamijou Touma started. "But you, Misaka, you were still smiling, a certain smile whose genuinity couldn't be doubted right? Just like what you had to your mother, and also, when you were sleeping," he continued.

"When I was sleeping?" Misaka asked, as the stars appeared to be brightened again, shimmering with a certain luster that couldn't be beaten by anything that the human had created. As if the stars were happy for everything, the stars were always there, giving any blessing with the light that it had, circling the two of them with their seraph of heaven.

"When I saw you sleeping, you kept smiling, as though you have no regret of living, and thus, your soul was still with you, and you were still a vibrant girl with a high spirit of life. You didn't do it with purpose" he replied, facing the stars above, being fascinated by the light that illuminated the two of them. "I didn't say that you didn't commit any sin, but you know what? I hated sin, not the sinners, so, I won't hate you."

Those words left Misaka in bewilderment, for she remembered that she was having a nightmare previously. Indeed, Mikoto was having a good dream before, and if she smiled when she was sleeping, it made sense. Nevertheless, it could also mean that Touma had left before she was having a nightmare, as though his presence around Mikoto would give her comfort, even in the other reality, or in other word; dream. She was really happy for that. Moreover, he didn't hate her at all.

"But, I was..."

"Look, a shooting star!"

Kamijou Touma's arm shot upwards, pointing a star who fell from the sky, forming a brush of light which gave another color of seraph to the black sky. The scenery of the sky was so beautiful and so endless, something which could make someone deliberately hold his or her breath. "Come on, make a wish!" He said to her, shouting some sensible words regarding the view of the shooting star.

Mikoto Misaka swiflty closed her eyes, making a praying figure, with a somehow, tender expression in her face that could relieve any burden from yesterday. Kamijou Touma, even though he was the one who told Mikoto to make a wish, didn't pray to the stars or else. He was just enjoying the breath taking scenery that took place in the sky above, with the company of the nature that surrounded the two. The sky with the shooting star was so beautiful that it seemed to be painted by the tender hands of God Himself.

Out of the blue, Kamijou Touma could feel a certain soft thing which was dropped gently to his shoulder. He turned his head, looking at something that made a certain contact to his shoulder, and with that, he formed another peaceful smile that relaxed his heart. It was Misaka's head, who made Touma's shoulder as a pillow. She closed her eyes, sleeping, as if the softness and warmth of his shoulder could defeat the cozy bed in the hotel. Nevertheless, something that caught most of his attention was the facial that Misaka head; it was a gentle expression with a genuine smile which beautified any fragment of majesty and beauty in her face. A genuine smile which showed the existence of pure soul inside her body. As if what Mikoto had done was the simplest thing in the world, she kept sleeping, with the greatest expression that Touma really loved.

Touma maintained his smile as he looked upwards, still, with a figure of a certain hazel haired girl on his shoulder.

The stars appeared to be dancing happily, looking at the sight of two teenagers under them who created a certain view which could melt the heart of everyone in the world. The stars showered them with nothing but bliss, with more intense brightness to the space that circled the two, with the company of calm breeze that created an enjoyable and delightful atmosphere. Whatever it was, the stars were always there, illuminating them, somehow created some orbs of light around them.

Perhaps they were not the stars, but rather, an opening in heaven where the smile of our loved ones shone to us, to let us know, that they were happy.


	6. The Origin

**_First thing first, I'm very sorr__y for my lateness in posting. I was sick and nearly hospitalized. Sorry:(_**

**_Now, I want to apologize for the lengthy characteristic of my chapters. I don't know, but when I am writing, words keep flowing to my mind and I just can't stop it immediately. So, I'm very sorry for that miss Anna Fatalism Dilettante. I will make up for that later._**

**_Some readers would like to know about the appearance of other characters. I will list the character of my story (except the one that has appeared): Accelerator, Last Order, Misaka Worst, Musujime Awaki, Etzali, Hamazura Shiage, Mugino Shizuri, Takitsubo Rikou, Kinuhata Saia, Fukiyose Seiri, and the last is Shokuhou Misaki._**

**_The last: This chapter contains my hypothesis of Aleister's purpose. Please judge the truth and the probability of truth of my hypothesis. Hope you guys enjoy it!  
><em>**

Chapter 6: The Origin

The black starry sky had disappeared, changed with a certain grey sky which could resemble the particular and usual autumn day, completely blocking the sun that was doing its habitual activity above. The water was dropped from the sky above, heavily drenching the earth below with its characteristic, creating enormous amount of puddle as the heavy sound of the falling rain covered the peripheral area. The wind picked up, as its howl swept the majority of sound that existed in Academy City, fully ready to blow everything away, together with the humidity that the downpour had created. The present weather was far different than the starry sky last night, and even the most advanced weather satellite in Academy City was dubious to be able to predict the weather in the future.

The clattering sound of thunder, together with the blinding shaft that was ready to scare everyone, was the one which accompanied a certain purple haired girl as she eventually woke up from her deep slumber. Stretching her arms with a low yawn that had been her ritual, she began standing up from Touma's cozy bed that had been her friend only since yesterday, not fully ready to face another hectic day from the morning. Her yellow pajamas was so messy, a good resemblance with her hair, the same as her sleepy facial that still demanded another time for sleep. It was not like that she was a heavy sleeper or something, but she slept late for cleaning Touma's dorm which she voluntarily did, without the acknowledgement of the said spiky haired boy.

The lack of the presence of a certain spiky haired boy wasn't usual for Itsuwa, as all of her senses began surveying the space, as if demanding the greeting and smile of Kamijou Touma that filled the draft with his courtesy. Knowing that for two weeks the said Imagine Breaker boy won't give her any company, she began making her way to the bathroom, for a good amount of shower time was something that she really needed to wipe away the drowsiness that overwhelmed her brain. In less than two minutes, the silhouette of herself taking a shower could be seen on the curtain, humming a low tune as she began cleaning herself.

The hot water that gave warmth to her flawless skin somehow brought her to the event that took place right after the incident that even she didn't know well. It was the time when Kamijou Touma, or to be precised, her love secret (or at least it was what Tatemiya Saiji told to her) requested her to take care of his dormitory, for he had an amount of businesses that must be done regarding someone's solicitation whose name she forgot to ask. Of course, as a good friend just like she would always be, she accepted the request, together with a promise from the said spiky haired boy to visit her and pick her up for another leisure time in Academy City someday. It was not like that Itsuwa was an oracle or something, but she somehow knew, that the request was related to the incident that happened when she checked out the landmarks of the town with him.

The steam that created a certain haze around her body also brought her back to the time and space that took place just when the stars were the one which adorned the sky above. Her cell phone rang, creating a noise that rumbled the room. It was a call from her superior from the Amakusa Church, Tatemiya Saiji, warning her of the presence of an unknown branch of church that was tasked by the Roman Catholic Church to attack the Academy City. Tatemiya told her that their object was most likely Kamijou Touma, as an individual that was strangulated between the science and magic side. As her guardian role was still in place, defending and protecting Kamijou Touma was a compulsion.

Nevertheless, somehow, she had a certain instinct which said that the object of the Roman Catholic Church was not her love secret. It was not as if her instinct was always right, but still, she just thought about the probability of that. It was very rare for the Roman Catholic Church to hire another branch of church to work for them, for the pride that the said church belonged was famous throughout the land. Even a skillful mercenary like Oriana Thompson was only tasked to deliver weapon. Moreover, the greatest magician only existed in Roman and Anglican Catholic Church. The Anglican Church would never collaberate with the Roman apparently, so perhaps, the object was not the boy who had defeated three members of God's right seat.

But still, another invasion to the Academy City was not something that Itsuwa wanted to see from VIP seat. Another invansion could only mean that the peace that the city had would be depleted again, and also, it would create destruction to the city that Kamijou Touma loved. From a little glance to the said spiky haired boy, everybody could know that his affection to the city was far greater than what they could imagine. This was the city where all of his loved ones lived (excluding his parents, of course), and for him, protecting them was a must, a law. Itsuwa, as his guardian, would be involved likely, and she wouldn't regret it.

Sixth o'clock was the time that the only wall clock in the room showed as its hands moved towards the respective number, just when she finished taking a bath. She was wearing a blue T-shirt and long black pants, a change from her usual attire, with a wet towel which was wrapped around her neck. As if it was a ritual that she had done invariably, the said purple haired girl walked to the window, looking at the rain which somehow collected the gloom that the humans had, relieving the burden that they had by absorbing it to the sky.

Being a rather melancholic girl from the start, far different from what she thought before, she began thinking again about the figure of a spiky haired boy who had the attention and affection of hers. Another figure was formed; it was a figure of a hazel haired girl that Touma had saved yesterday. Indeed, the said guy seemed to have no any feeling towards her, for what he had done didn't need any logical reason (or at least it was what Kamijou Touma said). Nevertheless, she still wondered of the relationship between them, for it appeared that Kamijou Touma cared about her so much. Well, maybe if she at least didn't think anything about it, she wasn't interested with Touma anymore.

Well, no need any logical reason right?

But it was still a dream of hers to be cared deeply by the said spiky haired guy. Well, indeed, Touma cared about her, but no that 'care'. The 'care' that she wanted was something that made her 'special', something that made her different than any other girl, not a usual chit-chat or a usual help. It was something that would make her felt like that she was really the girl that Touma specialized. Even though she had a feeling that the difficulty to reach that stage was extremely hard.

Well, at least she was not jealous again completely.

Completely? Well, maybe hopefully.

The rain didn't appear to stop immediately, as its intensity seemed to increase and increase from time to time, with the howling wind that showed the improbability to take a walk enjoyfully today. Itsuwa disregarded the rain that was still dropping, and made her way to the kitchen. Well, even though she was trained to diet by the Amakusa Church, but still, a breakfast was necessary for her.

Suddenly, she could hear a faint sound of her cell phone ringing, with a slight mix of vibration's sound as the cell phone made its contact to the table beside Touma's bed. Itsuwa approached her cell phone as her eyebrow raised a little by the sudden call. It was not the time for daily report for the condition in Academy City to her superior, and also, she didn't have any acquaintances in this city that knew her number. But still, the sight of her cell phone ringing was a signal for her to pick it up, and so, it was what she did.

Together with the disappearance of the ringing sound of her cell phone, Itsuwa checked her phone. An envelope image was displayed on the screen, showing the message that was received by the cell phone just now. A name Kamijou Touma was written under it, showing the sender of the said message. Itsuwa opened the message, and there, she could read the words that the message had, and somehow, she gasped

_Oy, sleep well. You appeared tired yesterday._

Itsuwa's lip curved upwards, forming a gentle smile that showed an attractive side of hers that could stop the heart of the majority of male members of Amakusa Church. A gentle, somehow satisfied expression could be seen on her beautiful face. She fully knew that the said guy had sent the message yesterday, but being the embodiment of misfortune for eternity, the said message would never reach her in time; perhaps a day or so. Whatever it was, she couldn't help but smile silently, as her heart somehow jumped in joy to the sight of the fragment of words that the message had, as if it was a painting that was made by Leonardo Da Vinci himself.

Kamijou Touma would always care about her, and he indeed didn't need any logical reason.

* * *

><p>Walking side by side under one umbrella with an effective human electricity conductor was not something that a certain spiky haired boy wanted to do in the midst of storm and thunder. Nevertheless, the lack of umbrellas that the hotel provided, also with the thought that an umbrella could be used by two people, 'forced' him to share the hotel's umbrella with Misaka Mikoto, even though he was a little bit scared for it. It was hilarious to know that the hotels couldn't provide many umbrellas in spite of the fact that it was the most expensive hotel in Academy City. Was an umbrella considered to be a commoner's stuff or something?<p>

Well, at least a spark of thunder hadn't reached him, not yet.

Both of them were heading to their respective school, as the place for them to study and learn (and to be punished for Touma's case). The heavy rain didn't stop them from walking to the school, a good example that was deserved to be imitated. Nevertheless, it appeared that the heavy rain had blocked some students and workers to do their respective jobs in the morning, as the soleness of the street showed them so. It appeared that most of the students decided to take a bus, as a good shield for them from any harm that the rain might cause.

The howling wind kept blowing, trying to steal the umbrella from Touma's grasp each time it blew as he struggled to keep it above his head. The umbrella couldn't protect them completely because there were always fragments of water that was blown by the wind, effectively drenching them slightly from the side, as their respective usual uniforms began showing a darkened color because of the water. Their books inside their bags had been wet because of the annoying endless water. Mikoto closed her eyes, trying to prevent any water from infiltrating her eyes. It was strange to know that the starry sky from yesterday didn't show any characteristic of rain. Just what's with the sudden change of weather?

"Oy, hold the umbrella tighter, will you?" Mikoto shouted, trying to defeat the sound of the howling wind and rain as another fragments of water soaked her uniform. She was kind of frustrated, and knowing her, it would not be a good sign as usually, a blue line hue of electricity would be formed to zap anyone around. Fortunately, the disturbance from the rain blocked her from doing so, as it kept falling from the sky above. "My uniform is soaking wet, you know?"

"I can't help it!" Touma answered, with another shout that began spreading around the area, even though they were only separated by twenty centimeters space. "The wind is unexpectedly strong that even I have a difficulty in keeping it!" he said. "We need a shelter, Misaka!" he continued.

Misaka's eyes began surveying the area, trying to find a good shelter that should be able to protect them from any crazy rain that was ready to give them a good time of cold. Her head began turning to and fro, as her eyes checked every landmark with a good cover or hood immediately. Difficulty in seeing couldn't be avoided, as water kept entering her eyes each time she tried to open them, even though she had covered part of them somehow with her hand. Nevertheless, she still had to find a place for them to stay for a moment, maybe until the rain was much lighter than this, or else, she would have to change her clothes at school.

And she found it, just when another water drenched her uniform.

Located in the corner of her eyesight was the Seventh Mist cafe, which seemed to be opened from the board that told her so. The hood which could resemble the color of rainbow was set at the outer side of the cafe's entrance, with a large board which showed the name of the respective cafe. From a little glance of it, Misaka could know that it was a good place for them to take a shelter. The hood had a decent size, which was enough for her and Touma to be there, and the size also blocked the water from drenching their uniforms again from the sides. Without thinking for a second thought, Mikoto shouted at the spiky haired boy beside her, pointing at the cafe which seemed to demand their attentions for it.

"Look! The Seventh Mist! We could take a shelter there!" she said enthusiastically to the sight of the cafe which could be her uniform's saviour. Kamijou Touma followed the direction that Mikoto had pointed, and as though it had been implanted in his thought for long, he agreed. Together with the company of icy howling wind and heavy downpour, the two of them walked together to the said cafe, and after the hood had protected them from any water, they sighed in relief.

"Guess we will be trapped here until the rain's incapacitated, I think," Mikoto said as she began surveying the space that both of them were in. "Say, why don't we eat here? The Seventh Mist has a good omelet that I love the most!" she continued as her eyes appeared to sparkle a little bit by the thought of food that she liked. Touma sighed. Being the embodiment of misfortune for long, he could imagine the bill that he must pay, and somehow, he could know that Mikoto was not a girl who would be satisfied by one portion of meal. Nevertheless, his words contradicted everything that he had thought.

"Sure, why not?"

With that, Misaka Mikoto opened the door, entering the cafe with a smile that adorned her face.

And in a fraction of seconds, the smile faded away.

The Seventh Mist was no longer an enjoyable cafe with comfortable aura that surrounded them. A traditional market could be a good call. The said cafe was so full that there were no any empty spaces that could be given to the two teenagers. People, most of them students could be seen here and there, with the waitresses who appeared to be so busy fulfilling the orders that the students wanted. It seemed that most population of District 7 had also waited for the rain in the said cafe, filling the space that the cafe had with their existences as they began waiting for the rain to cease. With this sight, Misaka Mikoto could know, or maybe even everybody could know, that she was too late.

"Well, it seems... we have no any place here," Kamijou Touma said, with a disappointed tune even though his inner thought cheered in joy for the survival of his wallet. "Maybe we should wait outside? Hopefully the rain won't take so long to cease right?" he continued, pointing the place under the cafe's hood that waited for them to be in place.

Mikoto began checking the rain with her hand, as it stretched to the outer side of the hood, letting the water to befall her flawless skin. She sighed again. "I don't think it will cease immediately. The school will start soon. This is the first day I joined the school after three days of absences, and I must experience this? How lucky I am," she said to herself as she closed her eyes.

"Don't say that," Touma said, trying to cheer the middle school girl as he grinned, exposing his teeth to her. "You haven't experienced something like me, being Kamijou Touma: the embodiment of misfortune and there was no any luck that..."

Suddenly, his grin changed immediately into widened eyes, as his brain eventually knew the hidden meaning of everything that he had said earlier. His head was dropped into the empty air just below it, closing his eyes in agony as he did so. Mikoto, who watched and heard all the words that Touma said before, looked at him with a frowned face, completely confused by the sudden end of words.

"I hate myself for saying that," he said as all of his muscles became weak out of the blue, dropping dead to the space below, letting the gravity to take its ability. His tune could resemble someone who had suffered the despair of misfortune for long, and it was the reality. Misaka Mikoto watched him as a tiny laugh, a laugh which was used to melt the atmosphere, escaped from her lip. She patted the spiky haired boy on the back gently.

"Ah!" she said, as the continuous tiny laugh kept escaping from her mouth. "A person has his own strength and weakness right?" she continued, seeing the spiky haired boy to be in a condition as if he was taken to the place where the sun was never shining brightly. "Well!" she said again, trying to change the subject to further avoid the gloom that had surrounded Touma. Her hazel eyes rolled upwards, as if an idea had hit her. "Maybe I should order two cups of hot chocolate! The chill is going crazy!" she continued as she took a thousand steps, entering the cafe. Then, she fully disappeared from Touma's sight with the company of a closing door.

Touma sighed, releasing an amount of water vapor to the air as it kept its form for a fraction of seconds because of the chill that the rain had provided. The downpour indeed didn't seem to stop immediately, and the howling wind began increasing its intensity. Misaka Mikoto was right: the rain wouldn't stop immediately. Somehow, he could know that his misfortune was one of the things that caused this heavy rain. What should he call this event? Oh, yeah, the rain of misfortune.

The silence of words began surrounding the atmosphere, as if the disappearance of the hazel haired girl had depleted all the noises that the space had. The rain kept falling down from the grey sky above, whose thick cloud signaled the water that it stored. The icy wind kept fluttering Touma's spiky hair, giving another chill to his head as he kept standing under the hood that couldn't give any protection to the wind. The aroma of hot chocolate began wafting from the inner side of the cafe, somehow inviting every visitor to take a seat there, enjoying the warmth that the cafe provided.

Touma began checking his pocket, trying to make sure that there were no any of his things to be dropped when he was walking with Mikoto. The experience for more than two years staying in Academy City had showed that an individual called Kamijou Touma often lost his stuffs when he was walking around, moreover, when he was only concentrating to other natural things, just like rain and umbrella. He sighed in relief, finding both of his 'treasures' and 'assets' regarding living were still in place, right on both of his palm right now. Well, his cell phone was soaked wet a little, but maybe it would be okay.

Without him knowing why, the sight of his cell phone began giving him some kinds of trigger to open his memory, as he started to look at the cell phone deeply, as if it had a hidden meaning or definition regarding the essence of living. The cell phone just replied with its lifeless existence, as it kept maintaining its silent mode on Touma's palm.

Touma's mind began traveling along the flow of time, until it stopped around the time when the stars were there in the black sky, glistening brightly to the earth under them. It was yesterday, right when he got a call from his comrade, Motoharu Tsuchimikado, regarding the calamity that Academy City would likely face. Touma remembered that he was having a good time at the hotel's swimming pool, as the silence surrounded him peacefully, until a certain double spy contacted him, of course.

The conversation between him and the said blonde guy began echoing in his mind, as he remembered all the things that Tsuchimikado Motoharu said, just in the first time his cell phone made a direct contact with his ear.

"Oy, Kami-yan, sleep late?" the blonde guy said via cell phone, with his usual style of talking that Touma had heard for long. He sighed, replying him with a bored look on his face, as he absorbed all the words that he said halfheartedly. "What is it, Tsuchimikado?" he inquired.

"Oh, no," he answered cheerfully, resembling the vibrant mode that the dew fall had. "Don't think I will only call you just when something's big happened. What am I? The one that befalls all your misfortune to you? Don't be silly nyaaa...," Motoharu continued, as Touma's ears twitched, trying to block all of his intentions to knock this guy off. It was not like that he hated him or he disliked him, but that time, he just wanted a good time alone after a long time of studying, and he just didn't want his time to be ruined by Tsuchimikado Motoharu's silly talk. What he could do was just sighing in desperation.

"So tomorrow, how about a good time with ramen?" Motoharu asked, as Touma still listened to his words with half opened eyes, as if he was trying to make up of his boredom of hearing the silly talk that only the blonde guy could do. "I know a good place for both of us to..."

"I'm going to hang up now," Touma said, as he began removing his cell phone from his ear, closing his eyes as he did so. Well, it appeared that the double spy had nothing to say in essential, so there was nothing important for him to continue the conversation, right?

"Well, it's up to you if you don't want to get any info regarding your dear friend, Kami-yan," Tsuchimikado said, audible enough to reach Touma's ears as he gasped, finding something interesting which was hidden beneath the ridiculous talk that appeared to be some kind of courtesy. "... well, what's her name, I forgot... Oh, yeah, Misaka Mikoto?" he continued.

"Well, what info do you have for me, Tsuchimikado?" Touma said, as he plastered the cell phone to his ears again. "Fast. Please..."

"Well, answer me first, Kami-yan," Motoharu said again, with a tune which showed the continuous grin that appeared to be implanted on his face, even though Touma couldn't see it. "Treat me ramen tomorrow, okay?" he continued.

No answer from the said spiky haired boy.

...

...

"Hey, Kami-yan? What do you say?" Tsuchimikado said again, after a long pause that actually only Touma had emerged. Touma really didn't know what to answer and didn't want to answer anyway. He was as silence as the sky above, as lifeless as he could be.

...

...

...

"Have I ever called you a damn inhuman freak, Tsuchimikado?" Touma eventually said something which was hidden far in his mind, even though he didn't really want to say it. Nevertheless, regarding the attitude that the said blonde haired guy had, he couldn't help but saying it.

...

...

The silence came again, as though both of them tried to process everything that the respondent said. The sparkling stars blinked silently, as if they were laughing at the sight of the ridiculous conversation that both of them had done. Well, being the embodiment of the most foolish students in the class, a conversation like this always happened each time they hit each other. Moreover, when a blue haired guy with narrowed eyes joined the conversation.

Well, they were called the Delta Force without no reason, after all.

"Okay, okay, I warned you, Kami-yan... or maybe Styl warned us, the civilians of Academy City, about the calamity that our beloved city would face apparently," Tsuchimikado said, starting his explanation as his tune began becoming more and more serious; a mode that he only used when there was something essential happened, so much different from the tune that he had used before.

"Styl?" Touma inquired, being absolutely confused about the thought of a certain red haired magician that should be in England with Index now. Then, it appeared that the threat... or calamity, just like Tsuchimikado had said, would likely come from England... or maybe Europe.

"Yeah," Tsuchimikado replied. "He said that the Roman Catholic Church has ordered a branch of church to attack Academy City... or maybe someone in Academy City," he said. "He couldn't provide anymore information about that, but it seems that our new enemy will be strong enough, maybe as strong as Acqua of the Back," Tsuchimikado explained, as Touma listened at him carefully, fully giving any fraction of attention that he had to the said guy. "Be careful, Kami-yan."

"Wait! That's it? Can't you give me... well... any more additional information about that?" the spiky haired boy said, preventing the blonde guy from hanging up as the lack of information forced him to. "That couldn't be considered as any information! Can't you give me any... info to my brain?" he continued.

The stars gave the answer to the spiky haired boy as Tsuchimikado Motoharu answered his question, together with the company of a slight chuckle that escaped from his mouth. "To your brain? Don't think about that so hard, Kami-yan. I know that your brain will not be enough to gain any more information. Have I ever told you that your brain's weight was half than any normal brain?" he asked teasingly.

...

Somehow, with the trigger of the teasing mode that Tsuchimikado Motoharu had applied to himself, the silence began surrounding the conversation between the two for the second time, as Kamijou Touma was too out of sorts, for not being able to get any answer that could satisfy any portion of his brain. The sound of gentle breeze was the only one that could be heard via the cell phone, as if it tried to begin the conversation. Out of the blue, Touma began speaking.

"Don't you know that you are actually an idiot too, Tsuchimikado?" Touma said, being so peeved by the attitude of the blonde guy whose seat in class was next to him. He had forgot why and when he became his friend now.

"Eventually you know that, Kami-yan!" the blonde guy said without fear, with a swift manner that accompanied his words. "At least I know now that I'm not as stupid as you," he continued.

"What! From what side can you tell that?" Touma retorted, as his sudden shout towards the poor cell phone that kept plastering on his ears was heard around the area. He destroyed the silence as the heat began residing in his head, as the words from his 'friend' began depleting any fragment of patience in his brain.

"From that silly answer that showed your delayed knowledge, and of course, Kami-yan, from our mark in school right? I got 47 in physics and you got 29, if I recalled," Motoharu said quickly, as if he didn't need to think of any obvious answer for a smart reply.

Touma dropped his head in agony, facing the reality which was oh so cruel and oh so true. For a fraction of seconds, there was no any reply that could be heard from the poor spiky haired guy. Being the embodiment of idiocy and having his friend told him everything about it was hard to be accepted, mind you!

"Tsuchimikado," Touma began speaking even though his tune could show that he was in an awful state for only God knew since when. "Do you think I hate you now?" Touma inquired, as the ground beneath was the one that caught all of his sight.

"Is that important for me?" Tsuchimikado answered, with an atificial asking tune that was heard via Touma's cell phone. Kamijou Touma's ears twitched slightly, being perfectly beaten by the other member of Delta Force.

...

"I hate you Tsuchimikado Motoharu," Touma said as he kept dropping his head to the space below it, with partially opened eyes, and also, with a usual famous sigh of his that he had done countless times.

"Okay. Now, Kami-yan, I have another question to you," Motoharu replied, fully disregarding the previous statement that had been thrown to him earlier. Being a double spy for eternity, it was too particular for him to be hated by others. He didn't care though, as long as Tsuchimikado Maika didn't hate him.

"Don't ignore it that easily!" Touma said.

"Are you involved in the explosion that occured some days ago?"

The conversation ceased again, stopped by the sudden question from the blonde student, as the gentle breeze kept caressing Touma's skin, as if it tried to comfort his heart and provided him a wise answer. It was not because of the other silly talk, but rather, because of the seriousness that was hidden deep inside the question, supported by the solemn aura that Tsuchimikado emanated from a distance. The sudden question left a slight gasp towards the thought and mouth of Kamijou Touma. Thoroughly, he didn't know how to answer it. How could he know the explosion some days ago? Moreover, how could Tsuchimikado know that he was involved in the said incident?

His thought began traveling to the time in Angel Fall incident and Daihaseisai festival, the time when Kamijou Touma worked with him in various cases. Tsuchimikado was a good asset for knowledge and he also knew the depth of magic and science. Getting information for him must be easy, as though he was trained for that from his early age. Also, even though he was distrusted by various people, but somehow, Touma trusted all of his words until now. Perhaps, he could provide more information about the explosion, and also, about the existene of blue wings that was formed on Mikoto's back?

Another images began forming in his head, as he started wandering around the time and space when Tsuchimikado was drenched by his own blood. His capillaries couldn't stand the enormous pressure that must be done when he started using magic, resulting it to burst, soaking his outer skin with its crimson color. It was not like that an individual called Kamijou Touma was a fortune teller or something, but somehow, he could sense that there would be something which would be a massive one that happened in Academy City. Something evil, something crucial, intending to take the life of everyone that he knew, with the prologue of the explosion that Mikoto Misaka caused earlier. Moreover, Tsuchimikado had said that there would be a 'threat' that will invade Academy City, and he, Kamijou Touma, just like what his misfortune always suggested, would be involved by the said 'threat'.

"What explosion?" Touma replied, pretending to be an innocent civil, trying to prevent Tsuchimikado Motoharu from falling to the depth of hell that he had experienced. No, he wouldn't allow another person that he knew to be influenced in a near-death condition. Misaka Mikoto was enough. It was his failure.

The silence became surrounding them again, as Motoharu determined the truth that lied within the words that Touma had said. For a fraction of seconds, Touma feared that he would know his lie, and he would be 'forced' eventually by the said guy to tell him everything that happened in the explosion's site. He gulped slightly. Afterwards, around twenty seconds that felt like twenty hours, Motoharu started speaking again, concluding everything that had been spinning around his thought before.

"Well, okay then," Tsuchimikado said with a somehow cheerful tune, just like the shower of blessing from the stars above. "Wooow, look at the time now!" he said, more to himself rather than to his respondent. "I'm going to hang up now. Bye then, Kami-yan!" he continued. With those words, he hung up.

The conversation was dropped, together with the loss of contact of the respective cell phone to each other's ears, with each mind began wandering everything that the respondents had told, being relief, or being worried about everything that would be faced in the future. Whatever it was, the stars were all there, being the only thing that would be never gone as long as Kamijou Touma was there.

* * *

><p>Out of the blue, a light pain to his forehead returned him to the reality.<p>

"Oy, dummy! What's wrong with you?" the hazel haired girl in front of him said as a certain annoyed tune adorned her words, frowning her face as she did so. "You appeared to be loss in thought, what were you thinking?" Misaka Mikoto continued.

Misaka Mikoto was standing in front of him, staring at him fully as she gave all the attention to him. In her right hand was two plastic cups of hot chocolate, whose steam emanated the warmth that they had, with their respective handles hung on her flawless left hand. Behind her was the scenery of the falling rain, creating a background as Misaka appeared to be a beautiful statue that was ready to be painted.

"Here, your chocolate!" Misaka said as she took one cup with her right hand and gave the other cup to the spiky haired guy. Kamijou Touma received it silently, mumbling a simple gratitude as he did so. He held the cup with both of his hands, enjoying the warmth that it had as the falling rain kept giving its presence by each drops, together with the company of howling wind that continued picking up.

"So!" Misaka said, moving slightly and staying beside him. "What were you thinking, dummy?" she inquired.

"Nothing," Touma said swiftly, taking a sip to his hot chocolate as in instance, the warmth surrounded his body with each drops of chocolate that he took, giving him joy in the midst of cold rain. As though it melted his brain, he began thinking again about the 'threat' that the Roman Catholic Church had proposed. What would be their object? What was their purpose in Academy City? Who was the 'threat'? What was the 'threat'? When would the said 'threat' arrive in the city?

The rain suddeny stopped, even though the presence of grey cloud could be seen in the sky above, showing the transient and temporal characteristic of the end of the rain. Whatever it was, the loss of dropping water from above could only mean that their ways to school were opened. Mikoto took the last sip of her hot chocolate, throwing the plastic cup to the trash bin beside her, and walked out of the hood.

"Come on!" she said, turning at him with a broad smile that beautified every fragment of beauty that her face had, together with the company of a portion of splash of water which was formed around the puddle that she cheerfully stepped on. "The rain's stopped! Let's go! Don't forget to bring the umbrella too, dummy! Your responsibility!" she shouted as her cheerfulness kept emanating the aura of bliss and joy, preventing Touma from regretting his curse of misfortune in the world.

Ah, who needed information?

With the sight of cheerful smile that was formed on Mikoto's face, Touma didn't need any further information. It was easy. The object of the 'threat' could be everything that he had, but he wouldn't care about them at all. What he cared was only the happiness and the continuous smile of the hazel haired girl, being the guardian angel for her. He would be the friend that she could confide, as easy as that.

"I'm coming!" Touma shouted with a slight smile on his face.

Because an individual called Kamijou Touma wouldn't doubt to stand in the front of Misaka Mikoto, protecting her at the end of the world, even though what was waiting in front of him was the whole world itself. He would never waver.

* * *

><p>"Thank you doctor! Really!"<p>

The gratitude of a woman in her late thirty could be heard in the corridor, penetrating the ears of some nurses and doctors that passed through, as some accidental smiles could be seen around. She was a female with long black hair and a face that could show a princess aura; calm and collected. She was wearing a hair band on her hair, perfectly matching the white blouse that she was wearing. An expression of endless gratitude was the one that adorned her face, with a slight urge to cry that she resisted with difficulty. Hugging her feet was a sight of a boy, with a bandage that could be seen plastering on his forehead. He was wearing a green T-shirt with white straps, together with short pants and a cotton candy in his hand. He was the victim of a run-crash accident that happened yesterday. Actually, it was very improbable for him to be cured, resulting death to his body. Nonetheless, it was a frog-faced doctor that dealt with the situation, and he was as great as new.

"Who do you think I am?" the frog-faced doctor, who was called 'Heaven Canceller' by his patients, replied, closing his eyes as he repeated his phrase that he had done countless times. "I'm glad that your son is healthy now. Be careful when you are playing, okay?" the doctor said, looking down to the tiny individual below him who looked at him with a smile.

"Yeah, doctor! Thank you very much for taking care of me!" the boy said in glee, ignoring his sweet cotton candy for a fraction of seconds. "You are a very great man, doc!" he said, resuming his words.

"I'm just a doctor, no more than that," he said, smiling. "Now, I must excuse myself. See you, Furasaki-san" the doctor said as he turned and left the two of them.

It was a good start for his day, as the frog-faced doctor thought to himself. The last patient that he must take care of had been healed perfectly, and the said boy's regenerative power made him capable to walk swiftly. Only a certain pig-tailed girl that was not cured completely now, but the responsibility for her had been given to other doctor, waiting for her to wake up eventually later. An old once said that the grey sky could only resemble the gloom that the people had, not the joy and happiness. Well the old could be wrong too right?

Out of the blue, his cell phone rang from the only pocket of his white coat that had been his uniform for only God knew since when, creating another sound which was bulging and different rather than the voice of doctors and nurses who were chatting about medical things. He took the said phone from his pocket, and without giving any glance to the screen that showed the name of the caller of his phone, he took it, moving it towards his ears.

"Doc, tell me everything about the health of Misaka Mikoto."

The said doctor's eyebrow raised, being completely surprised by the sudden words that the caller of his phone had said, showing no courtesy at all. The tune that the caller had, the style, and the way of talking which could show every fragment of efficiency that the caller had could only lead the frog-faced doctor to a name. It was the person that he had saved earlier, and right now, he was staying in a life tube as his life was dependent with it.

"Aleister Crowley," the doctor said, and somehow, he felt alone, because for him, suddenly the passing doctors and nurses around him were nothing but mere shadows that gave their existences only from the blackness of light at the corners of spaces. "Why do you ask that about her? What's in your mind?"

"That's none of your business, doc," Aleister replied, with a tune that didn't show any kind of emotion and turbulence at all. "Just tell me. Is there anything different about her? Something inhuman around the time she was taken care in your hospital?"

"Nothing, Aleister," the doctor, whose capability granted him 'Heaven Canceller' as a name, replied. "What are you planning, may I ask?" he said calmly. For a reason that only mother nature could know, the corridor appeared to be vacant in the doctor's point of view.

"Really?" Aleister said, and somehow, the doctor could swear that he felt Aleister's evil smirk on him just from a distance. "Do you find... anything on her back?" he continued.

The frog-faced doctor frowned again. He would never know what things that resided in Aleister's brain, and also, what connection that he had. Since he saved him from dying at one corner of The United Kingdom, he was still, a man which was full of mystery. There was indeed something on Misaka Mikoto's back, but he didn't give much attention to it... or to them, because they were not that important in comparison to the other part of her body that needed to be healed. Also, the doctor, with an experience that could defeat any other doctors, didn't sense any kind of infection or harm from those things. He just left them, and he almost forgot them, for Misaka Mikoto appeared to be fully healthy when she exited the hospital with her mother and a certain spiky haired guy.

"There were indeed something, Aleister," the doctor said calmly.

"O yea?" Aleister replied in a tune which showed his interest towards the things that the frog-faced doctor had said. If that was something which could attract the attention of the said former genius magician, that must be something which was essential for fulfilling his never lasting ambition. "Tell me more."

"... I will never tell you more, Aleister," the doctor said, with a great amount of determination that could be sensed from the tune that he used. With those words, the temporal silence began covering them, as the shadows of hundreds doctors and nurses kept creating a certain background to the wall next to an individual called Heaven Canceller. The vague sound of falling rain could be heard from the outside, as the only one which stained the circle in which 'Heaven Canceller' resided.

"Is that so? It's okay for me then. You have given me adequate information, doc," Aleister finally said, much to the doctor's horror, even though his calm state in facing every case in surgery had trained him to avoid any panic thought to reside in his brain.

"I don't know what are you planning now, Aleister, thanks to your convoluted brain. But, just like what I had said once. Don't you ever hurt my patient. Misaka Mikoto is one of them," he said.

Aleister Crowley hung up, together with the company of the phone's continuous tedious sound that signaled the end of the conversation. The doctor sighed, putting his phone in his pocket as he looked at the ceiling above, with an expression as if it would be the last time he would see his hospital; his home. Heaven Canceller's instinct somehow said that there would be at least one calamity in Academy City, and the center of everything was an individual called Misaka Mikoto.

* * *

><p>An old once said that in this world that God had created, humans were blessed by God in variety, forming a different group of people whose strength and weaknesses could be saturated eventually. The 'blessing' from God to humans could be distiguished, and each of 'group' could be representated by words: 'Courage', 'Friendship', 'Love', 'Intelligence', 'Sincerity', 'Reliability', 'Hope', and 'Light'. Humans were born with their respective strength, and they would likely increase their strength for the sake of mankind; being their friend in their way to do their purpose in living.<p>

Aleister Crowley's friend would always be 'Intelligence', as he was born with it.

"Plan, huh?" Aleister Crowley said to himself in his life tube that took its presence in the windowless building, the strongest building that human ever built. The building was still the same: the occasional yellow line hue was plastered on the lifeless blackness, creating a particular background in the inner part of the building, together with the oxygen that the windowless building continuously created which kept giving chill as the building's temperature characteristic would be independent with the outer temperature. Bubbles of water were formed inside the life tube, being the only things that accompanied Aleister's silent state as he was placed upside down. Nevertheless, the convoluted brain of Aleister Crowley kept progressing efficiently, as each neurons that it had continued their endless work.

"You still don't know anything about this world, doc, even though you could be prideful with the name 'Heaven Canceller' that you got," Aleister continued his monologue. "In this world that God has created, I will be the one who opposes Him, isn't that clear? One of my purposes of life, to achieve a greater good for me," he resumed.

Somehow, with the trigger of words that he had said to himself, he closed his eyes, as thousand of images and memories began flowing to his mind. The existence of Aleister Crowley could be there, but in his mind, he had wandered to the past, to the event of time and space when he was a little boy that needed tutoring so much, and in that past, he stopped.

* * *

><p>"...done!"<p>

The cheerful voice of young Aleister Crowley started traveling around the library. There, with the source of a bulb of lamp which was hung on the ceiling, he was sitting on one of the chairs that the library had provided, leaning his left hand on a long wooden table, with his right hand which was holding a pen. He was looking at the paper on which he wrote his explanation, with a piling book that took its presence just beside the paper, completely defeating the height of young Aleister Crowley. Wearing a purple silk robe, together with the company of long white hair that had been his trademark since he was born, a cheerful expression could be seen on his face; an expression that he rarely wore.

In front of him was the sight of a young girl whose age appeared to be the same as him; around 10 years old or so. She was wearing a pink gown, blessed by a beautiful face since her youth with a long blonde hair. Looking intently on the sight of white haired boy in front of her, she clapped her hands together, being fully fascinated by the knowledge of the said boy, completely defeating thousand books that were placed on the shelves that surrounded both of them until that time.

"Wow, Aleister!" the girl said enthusiastically, as her sparkling eyes widened in surprise, seeing the prowess of the individual in front of her. "How could you solve that? You are just 10 years old!" the girl continued.

Aleister smirked as his lip curved upwards, fully satisfied by the paper that he had written on previously. "There's no greater things in this world than intelligence and prepared mind, Laura," he said, with a tune that somehow showed that he had repeated the said phrase countless times.

"But! The theory of blending every element in the world to be one spell is hard! A little failure and mistake in mixing and blending could destroy your own body!" the girl, or Laura Stuart replied. She took the paper which contained Aleister's theory and spell. She read it as her eyes rolled in unimaginably speed and she covered her mouth slightly with her palm at the last word that the paper had. "Woaaa... Never think of something like this! Can it work?" she inquired.

"Of course," Aleister responded calmly, even though he must resist an urge to explain it to Laura Stuart enthusiastically. "I'm the smartest magician in our grade until now, Laura, don't you ever think that failure will eventually reach me," he said.

The said girl giggled, absorbing every word that Aleister said without giving any chance for her brain to filter it. The sound of moving clock hand was the one that accompanied Laura's cute giggle, even though Aleister's cold emotion gave no look at that. After a fraction of minutes, the sound of a giggling girl couldn't be heard again, as Laura began looking at Aleister as she leaned her head on her hand, with the company of some words that began spreading to the remaining space from her mouth.

"You really are a hard worker and a smart one, Aleister," she said cheerfully. "I wonder what will you do in the future," she said. With those words, Laura Stuart's sapphire eyes rolled upwards, as if she was trying to find something on it, thinking of something which was reachable for her brain. "You can be a cardinal, an arch bishop, or even a pope, Aleister!" she said.

"Perhaps," Aleister replied. His interest began growing from the new topic that his friend, Laura Stuart, had brought, so much different from a low level magic (at least for Aleister. The 'low level' magic that Laura usually asked him was used by high-leveled magicians) that she asked. Things that he would do in the future... Yeah, he indeed had thought everything about that, and what he wanted to achieve was far more than what Laura would ever imagine. "But I want to be higher than that," Aleister continued.

"What is it Aleister?" Laura said in a sing-song voice. It appeared that being a pope was the best thing that Laura's brain could think of. Being a pope could also mean being the greatest magician that lived in the world, and also, being a dependable man that could distort his followers, who could reach more than a million. If it was higher than that, what did Aleister want to achieve? That question began wandering around Laura's thought.

"I want to be God."

And that was when it all happened.

Out of the blue, with the word 'God' that Aleister had said earlier, a sudden pressure was somehow fallen to both of his fragile shoulders, crushing them down as young Aleister Crowley widened his eyes. As the sweat began drenching his skin, he began taking a look at his peripheral area. The hands of the clock stopped, Laura Stuart didn't move, the visible dust maintained its position, everything had stopped as they remained constant, as though the time itself had ceased to move, freezing everyone and everything in an ice statue. Aleister Crowley started thinking about any tremendeous spells that he had learned. He would destroy anyone that would attack him. Then, a voice, a somehow cold, yet unexplainable warm voice could be heard, causing Aleister to increase his guard.

"To be a God? Interesting..."

Then, suddenly, much to Aleister's surprise, the glow of the lamp began increasing its intensity. With the regular increase of brightness, the lamp began releasing something which took the shape of an orb which was surrounded by a blinding light, illuminating the dim library with the light that was as certain as the sun itself. Another orb of seraph was released, until eventually, all the spaces that remained began to be covered by the orbs of light. Afterwards, the orbs of light began moving, gathering in one spot just beside Laura Stuart, paralyzing the said young Aleister as he lost his ability to think and move. It began took the shape of a thing... a man... until then, as though the orbs of light covered something previously, they exploded, revealing the sight of a man.

A floating man.

Yes, he was floating, with the proof of the lack of contact of his feet to the floor beneath him, floating beside the literal silent Laura Stuart, as though she didn't see any of this. The man was wearing a white robe that reached his knees. His sharp sparkling eyes appeared to be ready to stab anyone just like an eagle, even though his calm face couldn't resemble any of it. Just like Aleister, his hair was white and long, with the decoration of a shining circle; a halo, just above his head. On his back, a pair of wings could be seen, flapping themselves gracefully as each flaps was ready to create... or to kill. From a little glance to his face, Aleister Crowley must resist an urge to kneel, as if the entity in front of him demanded his respect for everything.

Angel?

"Sorry to interrupt your little chat," the man said calmly, but somehow, from the tune that he used, Aleister could sense power, could sense the nature, could sense the world, and the highest, he could sense any celestial things that existed in heaven. His words were spreading just like light, and Aleister somehow really wanted to cry in joy for being able to live. "I must freeze the time so I can have.. private talk with you," the man said.

"Who are you?" Aleister said, even though in comparison to the man that spoke before, his tune could be considered to have an equivalence with a squeak of mouse.

"I'm Aiwass," the man said, still with a calm expression as he looked at the eyes of Aleister, who replied him with the same look (much different with any other human), finding him valuable. "Aleister Crowley, you are very intriguing," he continued.

"Are you an angel?" Aleister said, finally being full with himself, as each seconds that had flown gave him courage to speak to the entity in front of him.

"Yeah, and don't worry, I'm not here to punish you," the man, or Aiwass said, as though he had known everything that was circling in the thought of Aleister Crowley. "I'm here to help you, to see whether at least a low entity like you, human, could do something unexpected. It appears that you have a potential to let me know the value of human," Aiwass continued.

"Help me?"

"Ah, but it appears that your knowledge is low, huh?" Aiwass began speaking again, with a cold expression that couldn't resemble any angel that an individual called Aleister Crowley had in the book. "Maybe this will help."

Aiwass lifted his hand, and for a fraction of second, Aleister could sense a spin of energy that was formed in the library, trying to murder his low presence in the world. Then, Aiwass pointed his forefinger to Aleister. Somehow, his sight began fading away as his brain began falling to the endless pit of darkness. His legs could no longer support his weight as he fell to the lifeless floor beneath him, and what he saw was darkness.

"Aleister Crowley, awaken."

With those words, as though they were a kind of magical secret that were used to wake someone from deep slumber, Aleister opened his eyes slowly. He was lying on a lifeless whiteness, as the peripheral area was stained in white hue, equally alive for their own right. Aleister began standing, massaging his head as some mumbles could be heard from his mouth. He acknowledged the presence of a man when he turned his head to the right. It was Aiwass, with still, his usual attire as he observed Aleister intently.

"Where am I?" the young Aleister Crowley said, as he started looking to and fro, trying to find the remaining of library and books that had been his place for a moment ago. The whiteness was still there, and somehow, Aleister couldn't feel any comfort in the whiteness itself.

"This is the imaginary spaces between dream and reality, Aleister," Aiwass started explaining. "The whiteness that you are seeing now is the proof of the proximity between dream and reality themselves," he continued.

"And why did you take me here?" Aleister inquired bravely, even though he was now looking and talking to an angel who could blast him without concerning anything.

"Just like what I said, I wanted to help," Aiwass smirked as somehow, his halo could be seen to shine brighter. He flapped his wings, then, with one flap, together with the thunderous sound of the wings themselves, a thousand of soft feathes began surrounding the spaces and fulfilling Aleister's sight. They began falling gracefully to the white ground. "Just enjoy everything that I will show you later," Aiwass resumed his words.

"First lesson: Angel."

The whiteness began exploding, creating a blinding light that would blind Aleister if only he didn't cover his eyes. Then, he could feel that he was no longer in the lifeless whiteness, as the ground changed into a steam... no, cloud, white cloud. He could see the red sky with its sun which spread its crimson color to every space. The strong wind began blowing hard. Below him, below the cloud was the stormy sea, and it appeared to be angry for some reason as the wave kept crushing everything.

Then suddenly, a cry, so much similar to a war cry from a thousand of holy paladins and knights began spreading the area as Aleister widened his eyes. From the right side and left side of the sky, Aleister could hear the roaring sound of something that he was not quiet sure what. A war horn was played, and from a little sound that was heard, everybody could know, a war would happen soon.

From both sides, Aleister could see a thousand of chariots and white horses, together with a thousand men... no, angel, who was riding them as they began shouting another war cry in a language that he didn't know. Somehow, Aleister really wanted to die with the sight of a thousand angels that began approaching each other, as he began feeling his low presence in the world. All of their faces were shiny, brighter than the sun The angels, whether the one who was mounting the white horses or not, began unsheating their respective spears or blades, which appeared to be crafted with a certain celestial material, as each weapons began forming various dangerous elements: ice, fire, thunder, wind, holy, shadow, earth, water, ghost, and even diamond.

The both sides clashed, together with the company of crimson twilight that began forming from the sun, spreading the area with the crimson color of the blood. Each angels began killing one another, hurting one another, so much different from the angels that were written in fairy tales or something.

And the time was frozen again.

"What you saw just now, was the War of Crimson Twilight," suddenly, words began penetrating Aleister ears, as he turned his head, looking at the sight of Aiwass besides him suddenly. "This is the war between Lucifer's side, or demon, with God's side, or angel."

"War of Crimson Twilight?"

"As you know, Lucifer was defeated as he was thrown to the hell afterwards," Aiwass said, ignoring Aleister's statement as he didn't find any profit for him to explain more about the said war. "This war occured on the seventh day, when God had created everything in this world," he said.

"The seventh day? Isn't that the time when God took a rest after He had created everything?" Aleister inquired, as his mind began wandering around the Words in Bible that he had read.

"At least it was what Moses, the author of Genesis, had thought. God only 'stopped' on the seventh day, without giving more approach and creation to the world. Actually, on the said day, the God's attention was given to Lucifer himself, as He must prepare a war to defeat the one who opposed Him," he said. "The war ended in Lucifer's defeat, and he was the first 'demon' in the world, as he took the embodiment of a snake to persuade Adam eventually to eat the Apple of Life," he continued. "That was the first lesson about angel."

"I have known everything about that!" Aleister proclaimed, being extremely insulted as his pride overwhelmed his brain. Aiwass just sighed. "But you never saw the War of Crimson Twilight right? Moreover, you asked me a question, showing your lack in knowledge, Aleister Crowley," he continued, successfuly making Aleister to stop his protest.

"Let's move on to the next section about angel."

Then, the blinding light began covering the area again, as if it told everyone about something that should be done when it blinded everyone's eyes. The light was still seen even though he closed his eyes and covered them with his hands. When he had felt that the light had dissipated, he opened his eyes slowly, as his nose sensed a different odor from before.

He was in a mountain, on the peak of mountain. The darkness of dewfall was the one that surrounded them, as the sparkling star was the one which decorated the blackness of the sky. In front of him, was the sight of an immortal flame, a flame of eternity, a flame which appeared to be blazing endlessly, but somehow, he could sense that his anger, his hatred, just every negative thought had gone with the sight of the flame. The scorching fire was the one that illuminated the area, as its hue was the one that stained the mountain.

In front of the flame was a sight of another angels, seven angels to be precised, completed with their respective halo and wings. Some of them were wearing a gorgeous white gown, and some of them were wearing a war plate. They were standing firm in front of the flame as their brightness began covering themselves only. Their shiny faces looked at the immortal flame as the light from the above kept illuminating the circle which they were in. They closed their eyes as they joined their hands, mumbling something in a language that Aleister didn't know as they kept doing their silent state.

Aleister looked upwards, and he could see that the sky had opened, and within the opening, was nothing but light. He could see two pillars of light which formed something just like a gate. From a distance, he could see a throne, and then, a man which was surrounded by light could be seen. On the right side was a sight of another man, who gave the angels below blessing.

Aleister looked downwards, and somehow, he could know from the first glance that it was the hell. It was an endless pit which could be seen to be grouped into nine circles. The lower the pit, the more scream of men could be heard as the void, vacant, and lifeless blackness would always be the one that accompanied them. With only listening to the scream, Aleister shivered in fear as he began imagining the suffer that every sinful man received deep down in the hell forever.

"What you saw was the appointment of seven archangels, the one who had given their best influence in the War of Crimson Twilight, located in the mountain of purgatory, right in front of the holy flame."

Aiwass suddenly stood besides him, as he looked at Aleister slightly. Aleister just listened to every explanation that had been given to him as he stood silent. The odor of the mountain of purgatory was somehow cool, even though the presence of trees and bushes were not here, and the flame should be the one that would always create heat. It was as if the flame was only an ornament from the heaven itself.

"Tell me your knowledge about them," Aiwass challenged.

Aleister didn't move his eyesight as it kept stabbing on the sight of the seven archangels. Then, he began answering Aiwass's question as if he had memorized everything of it. "From the right is Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Sealtiel, Jegudiel, Berachiel," he said. "They were the one that represent each days that exist in one week."

"Right, and they are also the one who became the true messengers of God, as the extension of God's hand. They are also the one who lead the army of angels against the army of demon from Lucifer," he explained. "God pointed them because they were the one who could stand in front of Lucifer, even defeating him in the War of Crimson Twilight," he said. "This event took place around the time when the world was in deluge, when Noah's boat was the only one that stored life. God wanted the archangels to be the one that helped the new world after the deluge," he said.

"Is that so..." Aleister said in awe.

Aiwass smirked again, looking at his new 'student' as he enjoyed becoming a mentor for the first time. Explaining was not so hard, and seeing the explanation could surprise a genius boy like Aleister Crowley was something nice. Then, he began speaking again.

"Let's move on to the next section about human."

The familiar blinding light began taking its spotlight again, and just like the pattern that had been done twice, the light finally dissipated, revealing the sight of another scene of a land... a new, fertile land. At the center of the land was a sight of a large boat, together with the company of 8 people, with hundred of animals behind them. The peripheral area was surrounded by newly planted bushes and young stem of tress, together with the breeze that was flowing as the radiant of the sun illuminated them. A beautiful rainbow was the one that adorned the sky above. From a little sight of the land, everybody could know, that it would be a rich land which everyone would always dream of.

"This is the land of Sinear, as Noah named the land so, just after the deluge had gone. This is the 'new world' for human," Aiwass said, appearing again beside Aleister. "Ah, we are a little bit too early! He said. Let's go to the event about some months after this," he said.

Much different from a familiar blinding seraph, this time, the scene spinned by itself, as it was somehow absorbed by a point in the center of the scene. Then, Aleister Crowley was no longer there... or maybe... the scene had changed, together with the change of time which was showed by the lack of shiny sun. It was still, the land of Sinear. Nevertheless, the boat appeared to be a little bit older and there were some houses from bricks and stones which was standing around the boat. Trees and bushes had grown magnificently, and from a distance, Aleister could see a land which was specialized to be a grape plantation, and other kind of plantations. The light from candle and flame were the one that illuminated each houses. From one house, a silhouette of a man, wearing a black robe could be seen exiting one of the houses. He was wearing an amused smile as he resisted an urge to burst in laughter. Then, he disappeared as he entered the other house.

Afterwards, two men from a house which the first man entered entered the house from which the first man exited. They were walking slowly, trying to make no sound as one of them brought something which appeared to be a long blanket. Then, they disappeared, entering the said house as their shadows were swallowed by the darkness of the night.

"What you saw," another familiar voice of Aiwass could be heard, as Aleister wasn't surprised at all by the repeated pattern that he had experienced. "was the time when Noah was drunk, making him to sleep without any clothes which could cover his body. Ham, the second son of Noah laughed at him and told his brothers. The other men which brought a blanket was Shem, and the one who walked beside him was Japhet," Aiwass explained. "As we know, it was the fateful event for the descendants of the three brothers, or to be said, the fathers of the world. Ham's descendants were cursed to be slaves, just like Kanaan, and some other who now are living in Africa. Shem and Japhet's descendants were blessed by the God with the medium of Noah's hand, and what he did was far more important that what it seemed."

"More important than that?" Aleister inquired.

"The blessing that God had given to them was the remaining of what that had been given to archangels," Aiwass said. "Their descendants held a little piece of archangel's power that could distort the world. However, it was only a fraction that even they were unable to realize it. Shem and his descendants had the power to 'link' or to 'communicate' with God to activate their power. They used the power of environment or the creation of God to activate their ability. Japhet and his descendants had the power to 'create' reality, using them finally as 'power' which had the characteristic of the 'archangel'. The power of Shem was easier because God would always be with them, and in the contrary, Japhet's power was harder to be realized as it was only based on 'logic', and needed vigorous training." Aiwass said. "Shem's descendant were the priest, the holy men, social workers, politicians, lawyers and you, magician. Ham's descendants were slaves, houseworkers, employees, and others. Japhet's descendant were scientists, doctors, and the best of them were psychics."

"Psychics?"

Aiwass looked at the individual beside him with an amused face. "Don't you realize, Aleister, that humans that live in the world can be differentiated into three based on the power that they have?" Aiwass said.

"Three? I just know the whereabout of magicians, who wield the power from God, and humans, who are unable to have any power. So... what's psychic?" he inquired.

Aiwass smirked. "The first one is you, magician. The second is one is ordinary human, and the third one is psychic," Aiwass explained. "Psychic's ability was not in the surface of the world right now, but they can be trained, and with that, they could be greater than you, magician," he said. "They used the power of science and logic to create their power. It's harder to control, but it could be greater than magic spell," he continued. "Let's move on to the other event."

The darkness of the night was no longer there, changed with the twilight as the sun set on that horizon, swallowed by the end of the day. The boat was no longer there, changed with a high unfinished tower that soared high to the sky. Aleister could see a thousand men and women were bickering around the tower, and they began leaving each other to the other side of the spaces, with the path that was formed for them by the brightness of the sun, leaving a road for them to continue walking.

"What you saw was the Tower of Babel, Aleister Crowley," Aiwass said again. "Human's arrogance drove them to build a tower which could reach heaven. God was angry for that and He messed up with the language that they used, resulting them to group themselves and to move to the other side of the world," Aleister explained. "Shem's descendants were the Europeans, North Americans, and Australians. Ham's descendants were the Africans, the Carribeans, the Madagascarians, the South Americans. Japhet's descendants were the Asians. As you know now, the majority of magicians came from Europe," he said.

"Pschics... were mostly Asian?" Aleister said, as his eyes glimmered slightly at the thought of humans which could wield a power that was greater than magicians.

"You can see some of them, just like Lao Tzu, who created the 'reality' that was followed until now. The great strategist Zhuge Liang and Sun Tzu, who also created their strategy 'reality'. From around Thailand and India we could know some men like Balaputeradewa, who successfully uniting the southeastern Asia. Cao Cao, the 'Hero of Chaos'. Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first shogun in Japan. From Middle East, we could know some men just like Jabir Ibn Haiyan, the founder of chemistry, and Muammad Ibn Musa Al-Khwarizmi, the founder of first mathematic and algebra," Aiwass said. "They were people who worshipped science and nothing else."

"But... I think most of the modern science that exists come from the Europe and America right?" Aleister said, trying to argue with the angel beside him.

"Oh, but still, the first founder and worshippers of science and knowledge are firstly, Asians. The Europeans were able to create the 'science' because of two factors. First, there were some Japhet's descendants that also lived in Europe, such as in Greece. As we know, the Greek had a good relationship with the Asian, just like with the Middle East. Second, the renaissance age, the time when science developed in Europe was the cause of the jealousy of Europeans with the technology from the Asians after the War of Cross. They took the knowledge from Asia and developed them," Aiwass explained.

"But the Asians were also religious people right? Just like Shem's descendant? Buddhaism, Islam, and Hinduism developed there right?" Aleister inquired again, as another thought began circling in his mind. He just realized how foolish he was in front of Aiwass.

"Well, just take one example then: Islam. Do you know what's the first order of the prophet of Mohammed to his followers?" Aiwass asked, testing the knowledge of young Aleister Crowley.

"I don't know." Aleister said, without making any eye contact to Aiwass, after some portion of thinking as his brain tried to work hard. His brain appeared to be reluctant to admit his lack of knowledge, thanks to his pride.

Aiwass smirked. "The first order is: gain as much knowledge as you can. It showed how he worshipped knowledge, not only God. He just thought that if knowledge was used for God, it would be okay, but somehow, it also showed how he respected knowledge so much. Hinduism also, was the custom of the mix of Dravida and Aria people, right? The first thing that they found was 'technology' to build a custom, to build building, and to differentiate themselves in 5 distinguish groups, just like how they loved the most. Buddha, was the one that was found by Siddharta Gautama after he had learned about everything from his two teachers, and thus, he got 'enlightenment', or maybe 'knowledge' about the peace and purpose of the world, under the shadow of the Holy Bodhi Tree. So, I can conclude that most of them were based on 'knowledge' right?" he said.

Aleister kept his silent state, even though deep inside him, he was as surprised as he could be, so much more than any surprise that you would get when your girfriend kissed you, so much more shocking than any surprise gift that your friend threw to you. Every knowledge that he got in just a moment ago was so unbelievable, yet so true, that he couldn't think of any other secret of the world that God had created. Also, Aiwass, he was still, an angel who was full of mystery, as he didn't show any sense of doubt in explaining at all.

"Are you satisfied?" Aiwass said, as he observed that Aleister didn't reply at all. "Well then, let's move on to the other section."

The familiar blinding light began covering the area, as if it covered a portion of power that Aiwass must emanate when every scene changed. Just when the blinding light covered Aleister, Aleister began thinking about an angel called Aiwass that showed him something like this. He appeared to be an individual that looked at anyone from his or her value, and he said that he helped Aleister just only to see whether a man, a lower entity than God, could achieve power which was equivalent to God. Nevertheless, who really was Aiwass? Was that all his purpose?

Aleister Crowley was now in front of a mountain, and on the peak of the mountain, three crosses were standing high, and three man was crucified on the said crosses. A thousand of man and women surrounded the said mountain... or maybe hill, from its short height. Aleister could see that some black birds; crows, were surrounding the head of the man at one side, while the other man was talking to the man with a thorny crown at the center.

"What you are seeing now is the crucification of the Son Of God, the one that freed every man in the world from their sin. He took all the sins to himself, and thus, he must die on the cross. Nevertheless, he would reborn literally on the three days," Aiwass, just beside Aleister said. "This was the time when he cursed the man who challenged him, and when he blessed the man who resented all his sins and guilt," Aiwass continued.

Then, the sky began darkening its hue, together with the howling wind that began picking up, trying to blow everything away that blocked its path. The roaring sound of storm and thunder could be heard, as the thick cloud kept blocking the radiant of the sun. As all the calamities happened, Aleister could vividly hear the voice of the Son Of God, Jesus Christ. Even though Aleister was far, nevertheless, Aleister could hear the shout of the Jesus Christ painfully, as it echoed in his ears.

"The End."

"With those words," Aiwass began speaking again. "The Son of God died."

Then, a white-skinned man which was wearing a war plate; a Romanian soldier, unsheated his spear. Then, he stabbed the spear to the stomach of Jesus Christ. No voice could be heard, as the holy soul of Jesus Christ had left his mortal body, until it would be returned on the third day. Water and blood began dropping to the ground beneath. With that scene that took place, from a distance, Aleister could see that the man that stabbed Jesus was kneeling.

"What you saw that time... was one of the most crucial moments," Aiwass began speaking.

"Crucial?"

"The place where the Sun of God was crucified was also, the middle earth, the place where Adam, the first male, died, and buried there by his sons. When the blood of the Son of God fell to the ground, it befell Adam's skull, and the impact was impressive to the present human," Aiwass said.

"How?"

"Even though Adam had died for more than centuries, his soul was still linked with the soul of his descendant; us. He was the one that inherited his characteristic, his soul, his way of thinking, and just everything to us. When Son of God 'purified' Adam's skull, it was linked to us, and we were purified too, as our sins were all cleared and we have been reborn to be a greater men. But that's not the only thing."

"And what's that?" Aleister said, emotionless.

"He gave us more power, more power to do our respective blessing. He gave more pieces of blessing to us so that we will be able to release our hidden power. Thus, humans can realize their power easier. As you know, not more than ten years, Peter, one of the disciples of God, had become the first pope, or maybe, the first magician. Indeed, there was more magicians before Peter, just like Eliah who did some fire magic with the help from God at the Carmel Mountain. Nevertheless, the one who really did magic functionally and efficiently was Peter, that's why he was considered as the first pope and saint," Aiwass explained.

Behind the mask of a cold man, Aleister Crowley opened his mouth in awe, listening to the explanation fron the said angel. In just some moments of explanation, Aiwass had told him the existence of humans who wielded power which was different from magician, and he just told him something that even The Holy Bible didn't write. Nevertheless, the history of the world that he had got hadn't given him any way to be God. So, if what Aiwass said was true, there would likely be more secret of the world that would be unveiled.

To be God... wow.

"Let's move on to the last section," Aiwass, as if he had known what Aleister was thinking, spoke, as he invited the attention of a certain young magician that would eventually joined the science side. The blinding seraph was formed, and from that, the Hill of Calvary had changed into another scene. It was a mountain which was full with trees, with the smell of olive fruit which was wafted by the gentle breeze which was previously concealed by the land of the bushes, currently being happy for the company of the other men, in the shadow of the radiant of sun which appeared to be full. From a distance, Aleister could see a man who was surrounded by around twelve other men. The man in the center talked to the others, and finally, just like a holy man, he was lifted to the sky gracefully, until he was lost in everybody's sight who saw him in awe.

"What you just saw, was the time when Jesus Christ, the Son of God, returned to heaven. Before that, he gave us an order for the rest of His followers," Aiwass said.

"Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Matthew 28:19," Aleister said, without thinking at all as the words from the Son of God was memorized in his convoluted brain. "What's with that line anyway?" Aleister inquired.

Aiwass smirked again for only he knew since when. "It could only mean that if we unite all the nations, and of course, in the name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we will achieve a power which was similar to God. But also, it could only mean, that if we gain the power, uniting the power of humans, magicians, and psychics, we would have the power of God, and we could also become God. As we know, that the science said, or psychic, with you, magic side, had become nemesis for long, grouping the world with two sides which would oppose each other. The one who wielded the power of both sides, would be the one who could distort the world, the one who had the power similar to God," Aiwass said. "Well then, the explanation had ended now," Aiwass continued, without pausing at all.

The scene had changed again, as it returned Aleister and Aiwass to the void whiteness; the border between dream and reality, as if nothing happened to that place at all. Aiwass looked at Aleister with another cold expression. "So, any question?" Aiwass asked.

"Just only one, Aiwass," Aleister answered, after some moment of thinking that took only a few seconds, until a good question was formed by any set of words that had been created, something that he was really curious at.

"What is it?" Aiwass frowned, as he thought that his explanation was so clear.

"Are really an angel? Or are you greater than that?" Aleister asked, with a certain calmness of talking to the higher entity which could surprise even his mother. Nevertheless, that question that kept circling in Aleister's brain was the one that he was really curious at, and being the efficient man just like he would always be, he just threw the question at the said angel.

Aiwass's lip curved upwards, as it formed a devil may care smirk that he always used in such condition. Then, without letting Aleister to move or to speak at all, Words began flowing from Aiwass's mouth as it danced in Aleister's ears.

"Of course I'm an angel, Aleister, but why couldn't I be higher than that?"

* * *

><p>The bubbling sound of orbs of water which kept forming in Aleister's tube was the one that knocked him to the reality, as his eyes opened slightly, forming the sight of the interior of the usual windowless building as it was what his eyes caught. His mind began wandering to the time and space about an individual called Aiwass.<p>

Aiwass was really not an angel. He used the term 'angel' because it was what Aleister could think of back then, the only entity that he was familiar with. Maybe he used the term 'angel' so that the conversation could go smoothly. Nevertheless, as Aleister grew, he realized that Aiwass was just a 'manifestation' of 'aura', or maybe, something that power wielder, or psychic, or esper, emanated accidentally, or what the world now knew, the AIM. The reason why Aiwass was formed back then was maybe because of a fraction of 'aura' that Aleister himself released, because he knew some years after, that he was the descendant of both Shem and Japhet, the one who wielded the power of both sides. It was weird to know anyway, that actually, magic couldn't be used with esper power. Nevertheless, Aiwass, who was formed back then was the only proof that Aleister wielded two kinds of power. The other reason of the formation of Aiwass was because of the 'intelligence' that Aleister had, that triggered the formation of Aiwass, because Aiwass was an 'extraterrestrial intelligent being'. AIM from one person was so limited that Aiwass couldn't show his power to Aleister back then, only freezing the time which appeared to be oh so easy for him.

Nevertheless, Aleister still, believed of what Aiwass had shown.

Because he was the one who had the power which was higher than angel, because the manifestation of 'intelligence' of men was so great that it could defeat even an angel. Each men from Japhet's soul, the one who worshipped science, had 'intelligence', and from that 'intelligence', a power which was similar with the angel could be created. 'Intelligence' actually was the source of true magic and science that the world had, and the manifestaton of it could release the power of angel.

Easy, right?

Aleister closed his eyes again, with no memory that flew to his brain again. Then, a thought, so much more than any other thing that could be produced by his brain, kept repeating in his head, the thought of something that an individual called Aleister Crowley wanted so much.

"I will be God."

**_A/N: That's that. I'm aware that Aiwass appears to have no wings.. but I loved him with wings! lol_**

**_I mentioned some great men in other religion and in Christian. I hope I didn't write something discriminative. I just thought the chance of that to come up._**

**_Thanks for all of you who have read my story! Thank you so much!_**


	7. Prelude of the Clash I

**I divide this 'Prelude of the Clash' into 2 parts, because I want to avoid any kind of lengthy chapter that maybe some or the readers don't like. I hope with this, I can repair my mistake.  
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**Well, so here is the chapter. Please enjoy!  
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**Chapter 7: Prelude of the Clash I**

A singer once said that high school time was the heaven in the earth, the best and the most interesting time in human's life. It was the time when the grasp from the parents were loosened, resulting humans to be able to choose something that they really wanted freely. It was the time when they had a lot of fun with their friends whom they could confide, as though the future that lied on the road they were walking on would be a blissful one. It was the time when they would likely have someone that they really cared of, being the only one who would walk with them on the path that God had destined them to.

Nevertheless, for a certain idiocy that a spiky haired guy would always have, high school was hell, as the place for his brain to be tortured, and also, a place where he must accept the punishment from a certain pink haired teacher.

The endless falling rain with the rumbling sound of thunder and howling wind that became the characteristic of autumn in Academy City, together with the company of the noises from his classmates that signaled the first break at school failed to wake a certain spiky haired guy from his slumber, as he plastered his head on the table with closed eyes. Nevertheless, The occasional thunder that created a certain flash in the shady class kept occuring, showing its intention to wake Kamijou Touma. His body appeared to have no soul for studying, as he kept his sleeping state, without anyone who gave any glance to him, showing the habitual characteristic of sleeping Touma.

It was another hell for him. The chemistry class that Tsukuyomi Komoe taught discussed about a new material that a level four esper created by his reality. The name of the material was bradium, or at least it was a name that Kamijou Touma remembered from two hours preaching from the pink haired teacher. The only thing that Touma caught was the fact that bradium was a unique material that could change its structure regarding the pressure and temperature that external environment had, and for the other information, he knew nothing at all.

Two hours of chemistry lesson was the same as two hours of brain torture for him, as every word that floated to his right ear kept exiting his left ear, leaving a fraction of drowsiness that the words had. Chemistry was indeed the hardest lesson in school, and fortunately, the first break was placed after the chemistry class. At least he could have a good time of sleeping without any intervention from some 'kind intimidation' from Tsukuyomi Komoe (or a little tear from her occasionally), from Aogami Pierce, who must be flirting somewhere at the schoolyard, or Tsuchimikado Motoharu, who was absent this day. Before he slept, he saw Himegami Aisa left the class, so at least, peace would surround his slumber this time.

But still, he should know that the goddess of misfortune, the culprit of all his bad luck, would always surround him with the equivalence of nothing.

A 'light' smack (or at least it was in the point of view of a certain female who took the role of class representative in Touma's class) was the one that woke him up, as the pain that the smack invented made the spiky haired guy groaned in agony, pitying his back which must have a certain bruise that would last for more than a day. The surprising contact made Touma turned his head upwards, as his hazy sight began revealing the one that had given him a good time of back massaging later. It was his other female friend, who was staring at him with an annoyed face, as her stare appeared to stab a dagger on Touma's heart. She folded her arms in front of her big breast, which was covered by the usual black sailor uniform with a long black skirt. A white ribbon was placed in front of her neck, together with the company of her silky black hair which was disentangled to her back that completed the beauty of Fukiyose Seiri.

She indeed was a beauty... if only she stopped her ill stare at an individual called Kamijou Touma.

"Oy, Kamijou," Fukiyose started, with her stare that didn't leave Touma at all, as her firm tune penetrated Touma's ears. "Since you were present at school yesterday, your sleepy face never leaves your stupid face! Be more enthusiastic in studying, will you?" Fukiyose continued.

"I can't help it, Fukiyose!" Touma answered, as he dropped his head again on the table that had been plastered to his cheek since the beginning of the first break. "The lesson was so boring and I didn't understand the material that Komoe-sensei said at all. It is a destiny from my misfortune to have a certain idiocy like this!" Touma said in agony, without bothering to look at Fukiyose at all.

Fukiyose's annoyed face began raising its intensity of annoyance, as her eyebrow was curved upwards for a fraction of second, with the background of the flash from the thunder that penetrated the shady room from the window. Then, she took a bottle from her pocket swiftly and efficiently, and pushed it on the cheek of Kamijou Touma. The said spiky haired guy winced in pain for the second time, as the contact from the bottle resulted so. Whatever it was, she took the bottle from the flawless hand of Fukiyose Seiri, and read it with a frown on his face.

"You just need more nutrients," Fukiyose said. "Drink that, and be healthy. Remember, I don't like people who are just lamenting at something which is unexplainable and unimportant, just like destiny and misfortune," the health maniac repeated her phrase, as she pointed her forefinger at Touma's face.

"Mushashino milk?" Touma said, right after he had finished observing the bottle that kept its draft on Touma's right hand. "Don't you have anything which is stronger than this? I think something like mocha and cappuccino will be more make sense than milk," he said with a bored tune, as he gave his attention to Fukiyose, leaving the table that had been his bed.

"That is unhealthy," Fukiyose said. "You should know that cafein will be dangerous for your body. It just gives you a certain stimulation that is dangerous for your brain, without much nutrients that it can be proud of. Milk can give you more nutrients to growing people like us," Fukiyose explained, still with her arms which were folded in front of her breast.

"Whatever you say, sensei," the spiky haired guy said with a bored tune. He opened the cover of the bottle, and after he observed the thick white liquid that resided inside the bottle momentarily, he took a gulp of the said sweet drink. Even though it was still a fraction, he could feel that his strength was back to his body, as the drowsiness began leaving his brain. The sweetness that the milk had gave his tongue a certain joy for the delicacy of each drops that the milk had.

"Hey, this is not bad," Kamijou Touma finally and honestly said, as he wiped out his lip from any sweetness that the milk had. "Thanks for the milk, Fukiyose!" he thanked her as he placed the bottle on his table, planning to take another sip later.

"I told you so," Fukiyose said, as she began smiling, something which was rare to be seen on her face, even though she should know, that she was in an equivalence with a miss universe when she was wielding a gorgeous smile that could melt the heart of the population of a certain high school. Then, she began leaving Touma's desk, with some words that was flowing from her tongue. "Don't forget, you must help me to buy some things at the store for the preparation of Ichinarensai Festival!" she said.

Touma's ears twitched slightly from the words that Fukiyose Seiri said, together with the company of another flash of light from the thunder that gave a certain background for him, perfectly matching the shocked state that he was in. His bottle was forgotten as his brain processed the words that Fukiyose had said just now, even though it was only her back and her long silky swaying hair which could be seen now.

"Buy things... with you?"

A little whisper from the spiky haired guy was audible enough to reach Fukiyose's ears, as she turned to the direction of the desk of Kamijou Touma, looking at the sitting figure of him with another annoyed face, observing him as if she was determining something from the idiocy that indeed resided in Touma's brain. Then, she sighed, with some words that were flowing from her mouth.

"What's with your brain? Being so forgetful and so foolish about something like this. Don't you remember that you want to help me in buying some things for the preparation of Ichinarensai Festival? Also, you promised me to buy me some meals right? For the success of Daihaseisai Festival that I organized? You haven't bought me anything you know?" Fukiyose explained, as her rather loud voice was enough to make some of his female classmates to whisper at each other, maybe gossiping about what Fukiyose had said earlier, even though Fukiyose ignored it at all.

Another thunder created flash to Touma's mind, body, and soul as Fukiyose Seiri left him.

The endless falling rain, the howling wind and the whisper of some of his classmates could be in place, but for a fraction of seconds, Touma felt that they were just some shadows whose presences were only from the blackness on the whiteness of the wall. His mind had forgotten everything that he had said to Fukiyose just a week ago about buying things with her, as he busied himself with other things that were related to a certain hazel haired girl. Moreover, he had forgotten his promise to Fukiyose about treating her a meal just after the Daihaseisai Festival, and he had not bought her any meal until now.

Somehow, as if the misfortune told him so, he could know, that an individual called Fukiyose Seiri wouldn't be satisfied by meals like burger and hotdog, for junk food was something that she avoided since she was born to the world. What she wanted must be something healthy, and in Academy City, healthy food was oh so expensive, because it was hard to be made, as most of the food in the said city was synthesized by the scientist swiftly. He could feel a hole on his wallet, as he face palmed, with words that began flowing from his mouth.

"Such misfortune."

Indeed, the falling rain was still there, but the spiky haired guy could feel that the rain itself laughed at him for his misfortune, as each drops which befell on the ground created endless sound from the grey sky above, jeering at him for his lack of ability to gain blessing from God.

* * *

><p>Academy City could be considered as a city of technology, as a place where the science would always be the one that accompanied each townspeople, wiping out any sense of occult that existed. This was the city whose technology's development had a gap of thirty years with other city, resulting jealousy to every other country who were looking for the secret of great development in the said city. Specialized for education only, this city's majority of population was student, being the embodiment of paradise for education. Nevertheless, Academy City was also a city where people and also, students, were valued by their power. The greater the power, the more valuable a person in the city. Weak power could only mean discrimination and segregation, where those with weak power would be seen with one eye only. For additional information, students wihout power could only mean that their schools would force them to have abundant supplementary classes, even when the holiday was the one that written on the calendar.<p>

Unfortunately, Ruiko Saten was one of the people with no power.

Walking side by side with a girl who was wearing a flower hairband, Ruiko Saten sighed in agony as she closed her eyes, pacing through the street of district 7 of Academy City lazily. Even though the shadow from the grey sky still took its presence, the noises of children were there, ignoring the probability of another falling rain later. Nevertheless, the cheerful crowd of running kids didn't seem to be able to gladden Ruiko Saten, as exhaustion was the one that overwhelmed her soul, mind, and body. Wearing her usual Sakugawa Middle School winter uniform, she created abundant splash of water endlessly by her continuous steps on the water puddle, as she began thinking about the supplementary class that she joined just now.

It was indeed another hell for her. Her teacher could maybe tell her about anything, with a particular trademark of teaching of using the word 'simple' at the beginning of her preach. Nevertheless, for an individual called Ruiko Saten, she didn't understand anything at all after the word 'simple' itself. What the teacher taught her was just too hard, and still, she didn't know anything about personal reality that had become an ordinary topic in the first year of middle school.

Perhaps the only good news was the good condition of Shirai Kuroko, the other judgement member and also, one of her best friends. When she and Uiharu visited her at the hospital around an hour ago, the doctor had said that there was no any critical impact regarding the electric attack from Misaka Mikoto some days ago. It was shocking, Saten must admit, because if she remembered correctly, the intensity of electric attack was not a weak one, with the proof of blinding blue flashy light that was created. Maybe it was because of the continuous electric attacks that Kuroko had received before that made her immune to any electricity. At least what to do was just to wait her for her awakening.

"What's wrong, Saten-san?" suddenly, the words from Uiharu Kazari penetrated her ears, as Saten began giving a slight attention towards the said Judgement member. "You don't seem to be okay today. Are you sick?" she asked.

"No, Uiharu," Saten replied, still walking with her, penetrating the crowd that had been formed since the dawn. "I'm just a little bit tired, that's all. The supplementary class was just exhausting," Saten replied honestly, with a low tune that showed her lack of enthusiasm in continuing the said topic.

Uiharu Kazari escaped a tiny laugh, seeing the condition of her first friend in Sakugawa Middle School that couldn't be considered as okay at all. The Ruiko Saten that she knew was a person who would always be a cheerful and social type, and watching her condition to be dropped because only of supplementary class was something that she didn't really want to see. It was irony, Uiharu must say. She was blessed by helpful and cheerful disposition, nonetheless, she was not blessed by any power at all, belittling herself for the lack of power as the result. She should know, that being so helpful and cheerful themselves were a power which were greater than any other power.

A little glimpse of Uiharu's eyesight caught the panorama of a food stall which was standing at one of the corners of the street. It was a crepes food stall, with pink color that had become its characteristic since the first time Uiharu visited the said food stall with her friends. The board which consisted of the name of the food stall was hung from the roof, together with the company of a colorful poster that was placed in front of the stall, as if it demanded the attention of the passerby who looked at it. A short queue was seen, with some people who were waiting for their respective turn to be served.

"Hey, Saten-san!" Uiharu said cheerfully, pointing to the direction of the said food stall with glee, hoping the increase of cheerfulness of Ruiko Saten. Her shout was able to get most of Saten's attention, as she faced Uiharu with a confused face. "Why don't we just hang out and get some crepes?" Uiharu said.

Saten followed Uiharu's direction, as her eyes also caught the sight of the pink food stall that adorned the landmark of district 7, with some children who were running around it, together with the company of their parents who were watching at them from a distance, enjoying the taste of the crepes as they did so. Without any more thinking and difficulty in deciding, Ruiko Saten's lip accidentally curved upwards, showing a somehow gorgeous smile that she usually wore.

"Yeah!" Let's go Uiharu!" Saten said, as she ran towards the crepes food stall, with Uiharu Kazari who were chasing them, with an expression that showed their own gratefulness toward the youth that God had created for them.

* * *

><p>Uiharu Kazari took another bite of the strawberry crepes that she had ordered cheerfully. Really, from the first time she visited the said food stall, the delicacy of the crepes was never reduced, as the consistency of the chef deserved a credit for his or her prowess in making such a delicious food. The sweetness of the crepes was perfect, with smooth characteristic that gave her more joy in eating the said crepes. Without her knowing when, as if she hadn't eaten for more than three days, the crepes had long gone in her palm, with some pink cream that was remained on her lip as the only proof of the previous existence of strawberry crepes.<p>

"Wow, you sure can eat, Uiharu," Saten said, as a flash of white teeth was seen forming on her face. Her vanilla crepes was half finished, as she took her bite slowly, as if the crepes was the only thing left in the world to be eaten. "You're slow in running and sport, but your biting process is unimaginably fast," she said.

Uiharu Kazari escaped a tiny laugh in reply, as her laugh joined the voice of countless children who were running around them, with the expression that showed utmost happiness which eternally plastered on their faces.

"So, how is Judgement's work recently?" Saten said as she took another bite of her vanilla crepes, with another familiar sweetness that was spreading around her tongue for each bite that she took.

"Judgement is so busy recently, Saten-san," Uiharu said honestly, as she threw the plastic that wrapped the crepes previously to the trash bin besides her. "There are a lot of awkward incidents that took place recently, resulting so many paper works that I must finish in no time," she said. "Moreover, the Judgement's branch that I'm working in was destroyed, and I must work with other branches to finish the paper," she said.

"Oh, yeah... your branch was attacked by someone right?" Saten said, remembering the event that Uiharu had told her. "I was very worried back then. You were... dying, Uiharu," she said in sorrow, as somehow, a guilty tune was heard from her words, maybe lamenting her lack of strength in protecting her friends.

"Ah, but I'm really okay now, Saten-san! No need to worry right?" Uiharu said in glee, as she started to raise the cheerfulness that had been depleted from the gloomy atmosphere that Ruiko Saten had brought from the word 'dying' that was also a reality. "I was saved by a very nice man. It was very lucky for me, or else, I didn't want to know what would happen to me," Uiharu said, as she escaped another tiny laugh.

Ruiko Saten took another bite of the crepes again, as another familiar delicacy was spread around her tongue. "Well? You haven't told me anything about this 'man' Uiharu?" Saten said, as a little smirk was formed from her lip. "So what was this 'man' like? A cute, handsome guy with heavy muscles, and also, bright smile that always adorned his face?" Saten said as she touched her lip with her forefinger, as her black orb of eyes rolled upwards, imagining the 'hero' that had saved Uiharu earlier.

Uiharu Kazari escaped another tiny laugh again, touching her flower band as she did so. "Well, I don't like destroying your expectation about the one who saved me Saten-san," Uiharu said as another pair of children passed them again for the tenth time. "Rather than a muscular one, this guy was a little bit thin, and if you say bright smile... maybe I can't put it as bright, because somehow, I was a little bit scared by the way that man smiled. Well, I can't say anything about cuteness or handsomeness. Is it not a relative thing, Saten-san?" Uiharu said, as she remembered the figure of a certain man in white (albino) that saved her earlier.

Ruiko Saten stared at her with a blank look, completely forgetting the crepes that she took a bite before. After another silence of about thirty seconds was formed, the said level 0 esper sighed, as every fragment of her brain finally succeeded in forming the image of the man who saved Uiharu earlier, who was far different than her imagination that appeared to be the effect of watching soap opera too much.

"So to be actual," Saten said as she closed her eyes, taking the last bite of her crepes as if it demanded for its turn to be swallowed. "This 'hero' who saved you earlier was a skinny man with a sadistic grin, and also, in your opinion, this man was also ugly and rude, am I right?" Saten continued her summary as she folded the plastic that covered the crepes before and threw it to the trash bin beside Uiharu, with a certain dexterity that could defeat a sniper. "You are a little bit too kind in explaining, Uiharu."

At the other side of Academy City, or to be exact, in the apartment that was rented by a certain high school's teacher called Yomikawa Aiho, a certain white haired guy sneezed loudly, as his sneeze echoed through the room he was residing in. His sneeze caught the attention of a certain little clone of Misaka Mikoto who was sitting on the sofa besides him, watching him in concern as she did so. The said white haired guy rubbed his nose in exasperation, as some mumbles were flown from his tongue.

"Are you catching a cold? Misaka said as Misaka looked you in concern, trying to show some kind of affection towards you," the little clone of the Railgun, or Last Order, said, staring at the white haired guy, or Accelerator, as she did so, with her style of talking that had been particular to be heard when someone was around her.

"None of your business, brat. Maybe someone was just talking about me," Accelerator replied, without bothering to face at Last Order which was very particular of him. "I'll kick this person's ass if I know who the person is," he cursed.

Back to the district seventh of Academy City, under the shadow of the thick grey cloud that covered the perennial radiance of the sun, Ruiko Saten shivered a little bit as somehow, she could feel a certain awkward cold wind that was flown only in the circle which she was residing in. She gritted her teeth slightly, as she hugged her body by herself, as though she was trying to warm herself up. Her action caught the attention of the girl beside her, or Uiharu Kazari, who watched her in concern.

"Are you okay, Saten-san?" Uiharu said as she watched her in concern, trying to make an eye contact with her. "Are you catching a cold?" she asked in a worried tune, signaling her reluctance to know the awful condition of her other friends. "Perhaps you should take a rest or so?" she suggested.

"No, Uiharu," Saten replied hastily, as somehow, the chill that the awkward 'wind' had created had dissipated by the warm words from an individual called Uiharu Kazari, together with the company of cheerful noises from the children who were playing around them. "It's maybe just me, that's all!" she said cheerfully.

The circle street clock that watched the event behind them rang two times, signaling the present time at noon as it did so. Nevertheless, it appeared to ring with a melody that laughed at the individual in front of it, realizing the thread which actually existed and connected each people in the Academy City, which somehow, alerted their respective bodies each time they were jeering at each other.

* * *

><p>"I have told you, Biri-biri. You should get some sleep! You don't need to watch that childish TV show right?"<p>

"Just shut up, dummy. I know my health and I can take care care of myself. Stop calling me Biri-biri anyway!"

Room number 4032 was filled with two individuals in different gender, as the two of them started bickering at each other regarding the condition of a certain hazel haired girl. Misaka Mikoto was in front of the television, watching the TV show which had the name of 'I Love Gekota' that was aired every day at 13.30. Sitting on her cozy bed and wearing her respective pajamas, she was smiling all over when her eyes caught the sight of her idol, or the Gekota man, each time he appeared in the screen. Occasional cheer and laugh from the said Railgun could be heard from time to time, signaling her happiness in watching the idol that she loved the most.

The thick grey cloud that blocked the majority of sunshine from the sky above was the one that created a certain shady characteristic in the room, being very impoper to do anything that could burden the eyes in the said room. It could be solved by turning on the lamp, but the said bulb of lamp wasn't turned on, and the only source of light for the room was the seraph from the television, as somehow, it created a certain variety of color on Misaka Mikoto's face. Actually, it was not good for her to watch like that. She should turn on the lamp first or something.

Nevertheless, that was not the real issue. Since the said Misaka Mikoto went home from her school's first day yesterday, she was sick. She caught a little fever, showed by the red hue on her face's skin, and also, her problem in breathing normally. She appeared to be as sluggish as ever. Perhaps it was because of the continuous rain and strong wind that lowered the health of the said hazel haired girl. She even didn't attend the school again today, as her condition blocked her to do so.

But still, even disease couldn't block her from watching the Gekota show.

Sitting on the chair next to the television, the spiky haired boy watched her as he released a certain familiar sigh that joined the sound from the television. Really, she could be smarter than him in academic things and power, nevertheless, she was still a child who needed so much tutoring. Just what kind of person would forget his or her need to take a rest, only to watch his or her favorite TV show? Moreover, a childish one, not an educated one? From a little glance towards the said hazel haired girl, Touma could know, that she didn't feel okay at all. Even though her smile adorned her face as long as the show was on, enormous sweat drenched her body, as the red hue covered her face. Occasional cough and sneeze could be heard from her, showing the bad situation she was in. She really needed some amount of rest.

If only she was not this stubborn.

Mikoto cheered again for a hundreth time, as the Gekota man appeared again in the screen. Her boisterous cheer was oh so enough to wake every neighbour up, so much similar to the cheer of a toddler when he or she was playing his or her respective toys. Nevertheless, this cheer was followed by another cough from the said Railgun, showing the reluctance of her body to continue doing the tiresome activity. The cough looked painful, something that forced her eyes to be shut, with every muscle on her face which formed a painful expression. Wearing his usual uniform, Kamijou Touma sighed, and approached the said Railgun slowly.

Swiftly, without waiting for the hazel haired girl to react at all, the spiky haired guy took the television's remote which took its site on the bed just besides Mikoto's sitting figure. Closing his eyes as though he had planned everything from the beginning, Touma pressed the 'off' button on the remote, successfully turning off the television, leaving nothing but black screen which demanded another attention. Mikoto widened her eyes in surprise. She faced Touma with an annoyed expression that adorned her face, starting her continuous bark on the face of Kamijou Touma.

"What do you think you are doing!" Misaka Mikoto said, as her face showed more crimson color which was caused by her pissed state. She pointed the television with her forefinger. "Don't you know that the Gekota man will shoot eight monsters with seven bullets? It will be thrilling!" Mikoto said in exasperation, completely disappointed by the end of her 'fun' in front of the television.

"How can that be possible? Besides, you said that you wanted to watch the Gekota man who will be riding on the chariot, then, the chariot will fall and be burned, with the Gekota man who survived when you persuaded me to watch the show!" Touma retorted, as his brain began making a theory of the impact of Gekota to children, which could create a rather violent girl like Misaka Mikoto.

"That part had ended!" Misaka retorted hastily. Then, she stretched her hands, trying to get the remote control that was located in Touma's palm. "Give me back that remote!" she said. "The show is still go..."

Her words ended there hastily.

Kamijou Touma placed his hand on Misaka's head, as her flawless hair brushed Touma's skin in glee, as if it had waited for its turn to be touched by an individual called Kamijou Touma. Touma looked at the eyes of Misaka Mikoto caringly, with sharp eyes whose charm could make every girl in Academy City fainted or remained speechless in glee. Touma's expression and facial didn't resemble any fathers who intimidated their children to go to sleep fast, but rather, his expression could even beat the expression of any mothers who tried to persuade their children to sleep with a concerned look which was plastered on their spheres of eyes. No, it was even greater and more glistening than that.

"Please take a rest," Touma said. "I want you to be healed perfectly from this fever."

It was not an absolute order, but rather, it was a suggestion, so much more than any persuasive words that the peace maker could create. His words were decorated perfectly by something that somehow made every fragment of Misaka Mikoto's brain to obey his words in obedience, as though it was her hidden intention from the first time to do what Touma had suggested. Moreover, his eyes; eyes which were full of care and concern, so honest, so genuine, and so true, that even Misaka had sworn that she would trust Touma, as long as those eyes were that sparkling, and it would be eternal for him. Sphere of eyes which were full of genuinity and truth, with a somehow, comfortable aura that he emanated. How could a girl like Misaka Mikoto resist that?

That was really poisonous for her heart.

"Y-y-y-yes," Misaka stuttered, as her brain was so hard to say something like that, but not because of the reluctance, but rather, the sudden loss of words that was created just in the time when Touma's hand touched her head. "I'll take a r-rest," she said, as the red hue on her cheek was formed like crazy, beating the color of crimson twilight that was invented by the nature itself. Her eyes appeared teary all of sudden, and her sight began blurry momentarily because of the proximity that had been created previously.

"Good," Kamijou Touma said, as he curved his lip upwards, forming a devil-may-care smirk that Misaka Mikoto and half population of female in Academy City found breath taking. Then, he released his touch on the smooth hair of Misaka Mikoto, pushing her slightly on the shoulder, successfully lying her on the bed which she obeyed. As her lying figure was in his sight, he pulled the cozy blanket from one side of the bed, gently wrapping it on Misaka Mikoto's body, as the sudden warmness was formed in the fragile body of the said Railgun.

"There, be nice here okay?" Touma said as he sat on the same bed with Mikoto, just next to her sick body. "I'll be going for a while. Just promise me to rest until I come later, okay? I'll buy some food when I come back" he continued.

A nod was received, a good reply from the individual called Misaka Mikoto. Really, Touma was afraid back then when he turned off the TV, signaling the end of her watch. He was afraid that blue line of electricity would be formed from her forehead, effectively zapping him from every side. That was the reason why he touched the head of Misaka Mikoto momentarily, effectively blocking every form of energy to be created from her head. Whatever it was, and surprisingly, Mikoto obeyed, proved by her resting figure on the cozy be that the room had provided, with the gentle breeze that penetrated the room from the window.

"Well, I'll be going then, bye!" Touma said casually, as he left Mikoto's bed, much to the Railgun's disappointment. He walked slowly to the door, and with the last glance to the resting figure of Misaka Mikoto, he left the room, together with the sound of closing door which penetrated the silence that Mikoto had created.

And the blank screen of the television watched in despair, seeing the resting figure of Misaka Mikoto in defeat, being utterly unable to compete with the order, or maybe suggestion from a certain spiky haired guy, that could perfectly catch the attention of the said Railgun, not the Gekota show from the television. Because the greatest love and affection of the Railgun in the world could be Gekota, but her true love and affection in the world was Kamijou Touma, and it would never change, only until the tingling feeling called 'love' in the fragile heart of Misaka Mikoto was dissipated, and for the Railgun, it would never be happened.

* * *

><p>District 7 in the Academy City was indeed one of the most crowded districts in the said city of education. It was the largest district and also, most dormitory for high school students and middle school students were located there, and as we know, the population of high school and middle school students took the majority of population in the said city. Some malls and shopping centers were also located there, providing another reason of the crowded characteristic of the said district. One of the most suitable mall for hanging out with friends and comrades in district 7 was The Underground Mall, which provided their guests and customers with various accomodations.<p>

The Underground Mall took its pride as the biggest and the greatest provider of supplies and accomodations in Academy City. People coud say anything that was needed and wanted by them the most, and they could get it in The Underground Mall. Cafe, Game Center, Sport Center and Shop, Music Store, Shopping Center, Restaurant, even Jacuzzi and Sauna were located there, being the very best embodiment of the provider of everything that the townspeople in the Academy City needed. The atmosphere that the mall had created was oh so comfortable that it almost demanded everybody's attention to it.

Not only that. Perhaps it was because of the unique characteristic of the said mall that made it became oh so crowded. If people usually thought about mall, they would always think about a tall building with so many decorations, right? Nevertheless, this mall was located under ground, creating a certain bizzare mall that could attract the attention of guests and customers.

At one corner of the Underground Mall, a shop which provided enormous variety of sport staffs and goods was located. It was not so crowded in comparison to the other shop. Nevertheless, the goods and stuffs that were provided was the best in quality and appearance, as the shop owner never disappointed his customer who bought the sport goods there. There, in one corridor that were specialized only for balls, two silhouettes of teenagers could be seen, standing right in front of one of the shelves on which some boxes that contained of balls were located, as the light from the bulp of lamp illuminated them, providing sight for them.

"Now, first, grab this," Fukiyose ordered.

Wearing her usual high school uniform, Fukiyose threw a large sized box which consisted of fifty tennis balls inside. It landed on both of Kamijou Touma's arms, as he caught it with difficulty, nearly losing his equilibrium in process just in the time he caught the box. It was not like that the box was heavy or something but still, Fukiyose threw it without looking, and something like that might happen. Nonetheless, for a high school female students, it was very incredible for her to throw a large box with only one hand. Really, Fukiyose wasn't called 'Iron girl' without reason.

"And now, take this."

Fukiyose took another box from the store's shelf which consisted of seven soccer balls, placing it on the previous box on Touma's arms. The weight of both of the boxes made Touma accidentally dropped a little, a good proof of the coorperation of the boxes with gravity to fall to the ground. Nevertheless, Kamijou Touma's trained muscles effectively blocked both of the boxes from doing so, as he was back to his previous composure.

"Now, hold this."

"Oy, Fukiyose?"

Another box which consisted of eight volley balls was put by the flawless hand of Fukiyose Seiri on the previous boxes, which began forming a pile which was enough to cover the poor spiky haired guy's face from Fukiyose's eyesight, leaving only a fraction of his hands and his lower part of the body to be seen. The weight of the three boxes began shaking a little each time Touma did improper motion, a good proof of the limitation of the piling box.

"Okay, maybe it will be enough for a while, let's go to the counter," the iron girl began walking through the corridor, with the previous words which appeared to be a song for the poor spiky haired guy. Both of them walked silently through the corridor, even though Kamijou Touma couldn't walk in a straight way because of the weight of the boxes that blocked him from doing so.

Out of the blue, a little part of Fukiyose Seiri's eyes caught a sight of another box which was located at one of the shelves. The lack of her footsteps that could be heard by Touma's ears made him stopping his slow pace, as he stood still, trying to regain his composure. Fukiyose Seiri's mind began wandering for a little while, determining whether she needed it later for the Ichinarensai Festival or not. After some amount of thinking, she took the box from the shelf and placed it on the previous boxes on Touma's arms.

"Take this," she said nonchalantly, closing her eyes as if she didn't care anything about her temporal shopping partner who had a task to bring everything that she had bought. "It's a little bit heavy, so brace yourself," she said, as she began walking again, leaving the poor Kamijou Touma behind.

"Ugh."

As if that low growl from an individual called Kamijou Touma was some amount of prelude to another storm, the weight from the box that Fukiyose had taken earlier gave a certain unimaginable pain to Touma's arms and knees, as each muscles that were plastered on his bones began giving up supporting the weight that the boxes had provided. Nevertheless, Touma's brain still forced his muscles to support the said weight, as he began swaying around, with each muscles that existed began trembling hard, with a painful expression that adorned his face, trying to regain his composure. Eventually, his muscles began reaching their limit, as he started falling to the ground with a loud thud, together with the company of falling boxes around him that created more noises around the narrow space that the corridor had provided.

"Damn it, Fukiyose!" Touma cursed, sprawling on the ground which had been familiar with his fall to it. He squeezed his eyes, massaging his head, as if it was the best treatment that he could get for a little while. Then, he stared at the iron girl who had watched the whole scene with a flat expression. "What's the thing in that box? Brick? Iron?" he inquired. His rather loud shout began taking the attention of passerby who looked at them with an amused smile, jeering the condition of the spiky haired boy.

"Well, quiet wrong. They are bowling balls," Fukiyose said as she began kneeling, gathering the boxes that had been sprawled on the ground as though they wanted to accompany Touma who had done it earlier. "Wew, look at this mess," she sighed. "Why don't you be careful for a little bit, Kamijou?" she said, filling her hands with two boxes in ease.

"That's not my fault!" the spiky haired boy retorted, as he started imitating Fukiyose's action, taking two other boxes from the lifeless ground beneath. His muscles were a little bit happy for the loss of pain and weight, he must admit. "Besides, why do we need bowling balls anyway? I don't know that Ichinarensai will include that sport," he said, standing up as he did so.

"Well, we don't know what may happen later," Fukiyose said nonchalantly, as she stood up in ease, even though one of the boxes that she was bringing was the box that consisted of the bowling balls. "What's wrong with you anyway?" Fukiyose said, as she stared directly at the spiky haired boy beside her. "This box is just around thirty to forty kilograms. You shouldn't have any difficulty to lift this," she said.

"Please don't say that," Kamijou Touma said, as he released a certain comical cry, lamenting the lack of strength and the lack of victory of him towards a girl like Fukiyose Seiri. Although he knew the reason why Fukiyose was called as the Iron Girl, but still, knowing that a man like him to lose to a girl was not something that he wanted to tell to his friends. He could imagine their joke at him for that, and to be honest, it started giving shiver to his skin.

"Well, whatever it is, let's go to the counter," Fukiyose said, leaving the said spiky haired guy as the familiar sound of her rigid footsteps was heard around the peripheral area. "It's lucky for you, you know? What I wanted to buy was just some additional items, not the main items. But still, you must help me bringing this four boxes to school okay?" Fukiyose said, without giving a glance to the spiky haired boy.

"Yes, maam," Touma said flatly, following the walking figure of Fukiyose Seiri as he started creating footsteps that joined the footsteps of others, forming a certain colony that created an ordinary harmony from the sound that had been created.

"And don't forget that you must treat me something, Kamijou!" Fukiyose said suddenly, facing the said spiky haired guy as her long hair was fluttered by the wind that the sudden motion that she had created. "Remember to pick the healthy one!" she continued.

With the last words that an individual called Fukiyose Seiri had said, she began walking again, as her paces continuously created more and more proximity to the counter that had been her destination from the first time. The spiky haired guy followed slowly, not because of the boxes that blocked his agility, but rather, because of his negative thought that would likely happen, regarding the fate that his wallet would face. If his wallet could speak, it would scold the spiky haired guy for making such a promise that ignored his monetary condition.


	8. Prelude of the Clash II

**_Hello readers! See, see? Here's chapter eight! I told you all I will continue this fiction:D_**

**_Oh, and also, I would like to thank anyone who had given reviews and opinions in my last stories. "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Stars" and "The Hero of the World"_**

**_On to the story!_**

Chapter 8: Prelude of the Clash 2

Mugino Shizuri was unaffected by any other kind of smell and aroma that were wafted from the medicine in the hospital room. She remained lifeless, lying on the cozy white bed as her fabulous orbs of eyes were closed, blocking the sight of the ceiling above as her only proof of life was the movement of her chest. Her new artificial left hand was hidden by the folding bandage that was plastered on her skin; one of her eyes was concealed effectively by the eye patch, so much too horrible for various wounds that could be burdened to a woman. Of the lifeless characteristics that she kept doing, occasional sound of hers was heard through rare snores, triggering everyone to see her condition once more, only to see the familiar resting figure of the Meltdowner.

Staring at her with such concern that was rare for any other human kind to show, a certain messy haired guy, or Hamazura Shiage was standing at one side of the room which allowed the calm breeze from the nature to enter. His vision was stabbed on the figure of the resting woman as he analyzed every probability of her awakening. Part of him was somehow afraid of abundant scolding that he would get when the girl was awake, and another part of him really wanted to slap himself for even thinking of that thought. As his eyes watched the figure of Mugino Shizuri only, he widened his eyes a little just in the time when her snores were audible, but dismissing the thought of it with a mere blink as the Meltdowner continued her rest.

The sight of the resting Meltdowner was changed immediately to the figure of another girl beside him; concerned look was the one that adorned her beautiful black eyes, imitating the previous action of Hamazura Shiage. Takitsubo Rikou watched her with worried face even though the resting woman was the one who wanted to kill her, but she erased that thought just when she saw the bandaged figure of hers. She appeared to be ready to give the resting woman a hug once she was awakened, fully forgetting any bad intention of Mugino Shizuri once to take her life. She folded her hands in front of her stomach, lowly whispering a prayer that consisted the name of the said ranked 4th esper only.

Hamazura's green jacket that covered his T-shirt was fluttered slightly when all parts of his body faced his love and affection secret (even though it couldn't be considered secret anymore); eyes staring at her gorgeous face as his corner of lip turned upwards, forming a concealed smirk that he rarely showed. Of every woman that he had met until now, Takitsubo Rikou was really a different one. She didn't hold a grudge towards Shizuri, and moreover, she was in the state of worrying the said Meltdowner now. It was also, her underhanded nature that invited the attention of Shiage, as every thought of her being a friend changed entirely to a thought of her being more special than a friend.

"You seemed to be worried so much about her, speaking of an individual that nearly killed you," Shiage said.

Takitsubo's corner of eyes caught the sight of Hamazura Shiage, turning her head a little as though she didn't want to show her figure and the whiteness of her shirt. That question appeared to leave a thought to her as she returned her gaze to the resting woman in the front. For a fraction of seconds, Shiage frowned his eyes for the silence that was triggered by the lack of answer from Rikou. Nevertheless, a smirk from the corner of her lips was the signal. For that, she closed her eyes, dismissing any other thought other than the obvious answer that she would always give to her loved one.

"I don't know what feelings that I have right now. Afraid, hatred, fear, or anything, I don't understand," Takitsubo said. She paused for a a fragment of time, looking at the individual called Mugino Shizuri deeply; a stare which was so warm that Shiage was sure that even Shizuri could feel it in her sleep. Her brain worked hard, arranging any words that had been created into a sentence, that would be said just in the time when the other serene breeze penetrated the room. "But seeing Mugino like this, those thoughts... I don't have them anymore. They were all changed to concern, Hamazura," she said.

Shiage chuckled slightly upon hearing the answer from the individual beside him. He returned his sight to the resting woman who kept doing her pattern of activity as his smirk grew even wider, filling his brain with a thought of the luck that Mugino had for having such faithful comrades. His smirk faded as another scientific, yet stupid thought flew to his brain, and for that, he created a question that he threw to Takitsubo quickly.

"But I still don't understand why Mugino's hand and eye were blown like that. Isn't that too...cruel?" Shiage said, rolling his eyes to Takitsubo Rikou slightly as he demanded the attention from the smarter individual beside him.

That question successfully attracted the attention of Rikou for her action could resemble so. Her gaze to Mugino Shizuri was changed entirely to the one who had thrown a question. She observed him a little; eyes rolling with so much speed that if it was not because of the muscle that bound them, they would likely fall in despair. Then, she sighed slightly, removing the praying figure of hers, changed completely as the arms were hung loosely on her shoulder. For thinking of any good explanation that she could tell to the chauffeur of ITEM, thirty seconds were needed, just until she began speaking.

"Do you know Louis De Broglie, Hamazura?" Takitsubo started her explanation, even though she threw another question to Hamazura Shiage. Surrounded by the occasional snore of Mugino Shizuri, Hamazura Shiage's brain began working to reach its limit, eyes rolling to the ceiling, hoping for a scientific answer that could be given to the AIM stalker. He mumbled slightly, as Takitsubo looked at him with a frown, clearly waiting for an answer from the said level 0. "Umm..," Shiage started replying. "That retired English teacher from my school?" he answered, giving a goofy smile that decorated his face.

"And who are you talking about?" Shiage said, face palming her face as she closed her eyes, lamenting the stupid answer that was given previously to her. Really, he could beat Mugino Shizuri even though he was a level 0, but he couldn't give any good answer regarding a scientific question. Takitsubo even thought that perhaps an 'I don't know' answer was way more acceptable by her, but still, he was really impossible. "Louis De Broglie was the one who made the theory of 'Dualism of Matter'," she said obviously.

"Dualism of Matter?"

"It means that a matter basically had two distinguished characteristics. They were discrete particles and continuous wave. Nonertheless, one characteristic will dominate the other characteristic. For example, electron is best described by its wave characteristic, because its mass is so little. Mugino's ability allows her to manipulate the balance between these two characteristics. She can release a beam because she manipulates and strengthens the particles around her. It means that that particle will have 'mass' and 'velocity' that were needed to produce a beam, having a momentum to strike the object. Nevertheless, this equilibrium is unstable. A little miscalculation can blow herself. Well, this will happen if she didn't calculate well," Takitsubo said, as she returned her gaze to the Meltdowner, as though it was her face that could make her giving the said explanation, even though the said Mugino Shizuri was stiffened in her current position, not giving a slight of change at all.

Hamazura Shiage followed Takitsubo's vision as he too looked at the resting woman of Mugino Shizuri. He didn't really understand what Takitsubo had told him, as what he could understand was only the first three sentences. For a slight moment, his attention that was previously given to the Meltdowner was gone, changed entirely with the sight of the grey thick cloud above, just like what his brain had intepreted so. Indeed, the rain was not falling, but the occasional hue of thunder could be heard, blinding the sight of his as the crackling sound was heard, signaling the incoming rain that would likely fall. He sighed; instinct to be the one who lead him to a conclusion which said that something would happen this day, and for everything that he would fear about, he and the rest of ITEM would be involved.

* * *

><p>Thunder was the one that greeted Raven Huer first when he exited the airport.<p>

Indeed, he was one of the priests from the Church of Satan. Nevertheless, being a member of a somehow 'wicked' church didn't mean that he always liked creepy things. He would better be greeted by flowers or drinks, or maybe even some womans who would lead him to the nearest hotel to take a rest (no, not what you were thinking about, you perv!). He was not wearing a robe or so, just like what other magicians would wear, but rather, a black shirt and blue pants could be seen on his body; attires became the only proof of his tendency to follow the trends and new customs. He threw a black card box nonchalantly as he kept looking at the panoramas that Academy City provided whilst another wind fluttered his messy hair. His blue eyes followed the motion of some townspeople as their activities attracted him slightly, eyes moving to and fro until finally, they were all set to another thunder which was crackling above.

"Waiitttt!"

Raven Huer turned his head, catching a glimpse of silhouette of a woman; shadow became fader and fader until it was all clear, changed into a figure of a woman who was running to him. It only needed some steps for her until she was right next to Raven, even though he just looked at her with a corner of his eternal spheres. She panted heavily, holding her knees tightly as a grip, sweating, closing her eyes as she resisted another amount of loss of breath. The wind greeted her, fluttering her long, silky hair as it was trying to lift her short-loose violet dress slightly, inviting the attention of some passerbys as her 'inner covering' was seen a little. Nevertheless, her nonchalant behavior wiped everything, standing again hastily, fully blocking the sight of her underwear again, much to everyone's displeasure.

"You sure are late, Phil," Raven said nonchalantly.

The said woman looked at him with an infuriated face as her eternal emerald eyes shot a sharp dagger to Raven Huer. She puffed her cheeks a little until she was back to her composure, staring at the male magician angrily, hands on her hips which only accentuated her nice figure. Eventhough she was wearing a long-sleeves loose shirt, her 'courtesy' in choosing clothes wasn't applied into all parts of her body, bare and exposed, yet so slender, flawless, and sexy legs as a proof of everything, covered only with a mini skirt which appeared to have only two centimeters proximity to her underwear. Raven Huer always frowned at her eccentric clothings; beauty became the thing that she could always expose regardless the awkward attires.

"My name is Phillar! Phillar Alestovron!" the woman said, sighing in exasperation as she tried to catch another breath that was gone just because of the six words that she had thrown to the individual next to her. The chill that the wind provided was ignored completely by her awful emotional states; shout became the only thing to channel everything from her. "Just call me Phillar! Don's abbreviate that easily with your clumsy brain, idiot!"

"Woa, you're one to talk," Raven said casually, not intending to be involved in the endless bickering that the woman had started. He began thinking about the negative side of making her the partner, really. Nevertheless, he needed a person for him to accompany him to Academy City. Even though he knew that there were so many options beside Phillar that he could choose, he chose her anyway, being the only one that existed in his brain just in the time when he wanted to leave Vatican. "Beside, we're here to have 'fun' in this city, right? Be more serious, can't you?"

The woman gave him a trademark grin, being absolutely cheerful even though her brain should have been drenched by a great amount of fear by now. Nonetheless, it was Phillar's place in the world; to be an optimistic woman compared to others. She was a kind of woman who could smile in the endless trench, not because of the enjoyment that she could get there, but rather, because of the thought that she could exit that trech eventually. No matter how many times he hated it, Raven Huer must admit that her underhanded nature was something that he really needed right now. She was his childhood friend, after all.

"It was very rare for you to obey the other church's order, Raven, moreover the Vatican Church. What's with you? Good change of mood?" Phillar said between laugh, as her giggle attracted some other pedestrians who looked at her in an unknown expression, smiles becoming their only evidences of happiness as they saw the laughing figure of Phillar Alestovron.

Of the smile and comfortable aura that Phillar Alestovron had emanated, he suddenly felt a stab in his heart; cry became the thing that he really wanted to do as he mumbled inaudibly, cursing the said church slightly as another flash of thunder gave the proportional background with his emotional state. Afterwards, his brain was filled entirely with the words that Fiamma of the Right said to him, closing his eyes as he did so. For a span of seconds that had been created by God or Devil, he was left alone inside the circle that he created himself; invisible barrier became the things that blocked everything as he was in his own hell momentarily.

"Raven? Are you okay?" Phillar said in concern. Her smile faded instantly by the sight of her childhood friend that appeared to be thrown into the place where children never smiled and the sky was never blue. She tried to put a whimsical smile to melt the atmosphere but the effort was unmotivated by her brain which worked hard to acknowledge the thought that Raven was thinking in futile. For seconds that were similar to hours, Raven eventually opened his eyes, staring straightly forward with a blazing, yet so freezing flame of endless, for there is no any bluntness in his eyes; a determined face that he rarely showed.

"Let's go, Phillar. We must start using your tracking spell."

Phillar was taken aback a little, looking at him grimly for the surprise for the right name that he mentioned just a while ago. It was very rare for Raven to call her with the name 'Phillar', not 'Phil' or something else that made her resisted an urge to slap the cheeks of the said Raven Huer. Of the surprise that Phillar was thinking, Raven began walking slightly, eyes carefully tried to find a panorama where the breath from men wasn't audible, for a silent place was needed to cast the tracking spell. Phillar successfully knew her lateness as she gave a chase to him; thunder became the witness of everything; crackling sound became the thing which created the similar tempo with her running pace to Raven Huer.

* * *

><p>Kamijou Touma ate his crepes in relief.<p>

After carefully examining the way of life of Fukiyose Seiri, Touma couldn't think of anything that could satisfy the girl when it came to food. Oh, of course it was truly right; no food was fully healthy, right? Such thought gave shiver to him when he remembered the promise of him to her. Not because of the fact that she would likey couldn't eat if the health maniac continued her antique in choosing, but rather, because he knew that the healthier the food, the more expensive it would be. For Touma, whose lonely life in dormitory forced him to anything as long as it was edible and cheap, that was unacceptable.

It appeared that the reality was much nicer to him... or maybe Fukiyose was nicer to him. She didn't choose anything fancy; only a crepe that she was now holding whilst they were pacing through stores. Nonetheless, he looked at her with raised eyebrow and wide gaze regarding the topping that she chose previously: broccoli with low fat milk, with a little blueberry and strawberry on the top. Of other options that she could choose, it seems that her eyes had caught the glimmer of the topping already, and for heaven's sake, he didn't dare to take a bite of that.

"This crepe is good," Fukiyose said straightly regarding the food through her audible munch. Compared to Touma's, her crepes didn't in the verge of being thrown to the trash bin immediately, as she pulverized it completely patiently and carefully (he remembered that he was once scolded by her for eating too fast, mumbling something about munching at least 32 times or something that he had forgotten). "The shopping is fine, and I only had to wait for the items to be delivered eventually."

After five minutes of back-torturing and heavy-panting from the said spiky haired guy, Fukiyose finally ackowledged that she could be reported for human usage and enslaving if Touma couldn't walk on the other day because of his lack of strength in lifting the items. She chose to deliver the items to their school finally, much to Touma's pleasure. Fukiyose scolded him again though, interrogating him of food that he ate that was really lack of nutrients.

Not that he denied it though, his source of protein was only some eggs and no more than that.

After the one-sided talk that Touma replied with a frowned face, the God of silence had presented them the lack of words for a slight of moments. They walked silently through the store, fully enchanted by the various stores and the colorful light from the neon lamps around them, destination to be the only key of link of their whereabouts as they fixed their destination only to the exit gate of the Underground Mall. Fukiyose Seiri eventually finished her meal, wrapping the leftovers happily and throwing it to the nearest trash bin. For the silence that had been created, she broke it with the trigger of a smile.

"I haven't properly thanked you for saving me in Daihaseisai incident," Fukiyose said gently with a low tune; a facial of gratitude adorned her face in sync. The words caught Touma's attention, and he must say that it was so comical to see the change of distinct disposition of hers in a fraction of minutes. "My fellow had said that if it were not because of your quick thinking, maybe I would not be here now," she said.

And she smiled gently, as though the peripheral atmosphere had made her so. She should know that her smile was a best interpretation of beauty, even though she was so obstinate regarding dignity and whatever it was that blocked her exploit of awesomeness. Kamijou Touma found it hard to resist an urge to smile once he saw that, only until he lowered his gaze and found out that she crossed her arms between words and whoa, he didn't need to see the cleavage there.

He blushed furiously, flustered completely because of the mischief of his underhanded nature. Purposely avoiding any eye contact to her, he pretended that one of the bill boards caught his attention, only to find himself in a more awkward situation that could be sensed by Fukiyose Seiri herself.

"Hey, Kamijou! What's wrong!" she said in an annoyed tune, a good sign of two days staying in hospital or maybe longer. "Geez... just when I thanked you a little. Can't you give me better reply other than that?" she said, and of everything that he feared of, he swore that a knukle of fist of irritation was formed on her forehead.

"No! It's not like that!" Kamijou Touma said between his wild gesture, leaping to the space right in front of Fukiyose Seiri as he walked backwards, hoping that it could make her better. "I really appreciate for thanking me, and..."

His speech was left when the spiky haired guy felt a light pain on his back, together with a company of shriek reached his ears. Out of the blue, he could feel a cold thing which drenched his back part of head, and also, a widened eyes of Fukiyose Seiri was in sight. For that, for everything of them, Touma could conclude as his brain worked to its finest: this must be another curse of misfortune.

The cold thing, or to be precised, the ice cream finally fell to the ground, leaving only a certain mischievous sweetness that he really didn't need on his hair. Every thought of apologizing to Fukiyose had turned into the lamenting of misfortune, and also, every sight of Fukiyose Seiri had changed into a middle school girl who walked to his front, watching him with a horrified face, and also, a little amused look.

Kamijou Touma sighed. This really was a long day.

* * *

><p>There was something that Kamijou Touma really regreted regarding staying in Academy City. It was –other than giving Tsuchimikado Motoharu his name- that he couldn't fill himself with brute courage when Fukiyose Seiri had forced him to do something. He was inferior compared to her, or else, he must call a certain doctor for the best treatment after one sided physical bicker with the said girl. It was lucky that Fukiyose was originally a good girl, for she didn't force him to do anything just like a certain magical Index. But it appeared that now was not the past.<p>

He chose not to be indifferent when Fukiyose Seiri persuaded (forced him with intimidating look and knuckle fist) him to apologize to the middle school girl he bumped into, and also, to get the said girl a new ice cream for that. The middle school girl, or Saten Ruiko just like she introduced herself, appeared to be reluctant when she heard the suggestion from the high school girl. Nonetheless, she joined the group anyway, and it seemed that she had no regret for that, for she licked a portion of her parfait from the nearest store happily.

It was hilarious how a cheap ice cream cone from the nearest fast food restaurant must be paid with a glass of expensive parfait from a store whose fanciness could be sensed by Touma's wallet from a distance.

Such misfortune.

"Heee so you're from Sakugawa Middle School right? I remembered that the said school had some feats in the last Daihaseisai Festival," Fukiyose said, sitting on the chair beside Ruiko Saten as Touma watched them chatting from the opposite side with a bored look and a portion of thought to his thinning wallet. "Anyway," Fukiyose said whilst her palms were folded beneath her chin. "What are you doing?"

"I'm just loitering around after my friend went for Judgement's work," Saten said between her munch of another spoonful of parfait. Of anything that he could imagine, the spiky haired boy's brain somehow created an image of a certain girl with pigtails that became Misaka Mikoto roommate. He remembered that she would stalk her in her sleep (it was easy. Same room, same privilege to do anything) and she would likely murder him in his slumber if she knew that he stayed with the Railgun. Yet another threat for him to face. He found himself shivering because of the thought.

Ruiko Saten looked at the figure of the spiky haired guy that rested his face on his palm as she gulped the ice cream. "Thank you for buying me the parfait, Kamijou-san!" she said cheerfully while leaving some presences of the cream on her delicate lip. Fukiyose gave him an intense glare, as if she was warning him to say properly to the said wearer of Sakugawa Middle School's winter uniform. Whether it was because of his fear or his habit to be so polite to a stranger, moreover a girl, he spoke courteously.

"No problem."

And she returned her gaze to the short-forgotten parfait, invading the existence of it as the glass became loss its fullness each times a spoon was drawn from it. She ate the parfait as if it was the first time she tasted the said food, or maybe, it was because of the delicacy from the parfait that drove her crazy. The long haired middle school girl wiped her lip with the nearest napkin and took another spoonful of the parfait. After a fraction of minutes of easy chit-chat, she finished her meal and smiled cheerfully at both of them.

"But I'm really sorry for bothering you two!" she said with a satisfied look on her face; cheerfulness became the thing that overwhelmed her brain because of the kindness from the high school students. "You two are in the middle of dating right?" Saten said as she gave an amused grin.

"No!" Fukiyose said, half-shouting, half-blushing. "How could you tell that we are couple or something?" she inquired and Touma could swear that he saw that the said girl backed away and widened her eyes because of the sudden shout. "I'm just his..." Fukiyose said, looking at Touma, analyzing a good word that could describe himself or herself. "... superior, or maybe just someone who orders him around... and also, someone who is bound with his bad luck."

Kamijou Touma released a certain comical tears after he had heard the previous words from the said girl. "You don't have to say that so straightforwardly," he said, dropping his head as he could feel that a knife stabbed his heart because of that.

And the knife was changed entirely with an axe.

All of the sudden, the light was turned off; darkness was spreading the area faster than light was disappearing from the space. The atmophere became so tense and tight, and he could feel that his sweat began flowing fast because of the change of aura. For a fraction of second, he couldn't remember any happy moments or anything cheerful, as his brain was overwhelmed with nothing but bad thoughts, sorrow, sad moments, and becoming the top of them: fear. In the dim light, he observed that every passerbys were gone, leaving him, Fukiyose, and the middle school girl alone, with similar expressions that showed their current condition which could be considered the same with him.

Then, without any trace of life just like footsteps or so, a silhouette of a man was approaching them, finally revealing his facial just in the time they wanted to get out of there. He stopped his pace in front of their table, much to their horror. He was wearing a black shirt and blue plants, all in dark color that could resemble the space. A messy hair was the one that adorned his crown of head, as he played the cardbox by throwing and catching it by his hand nonchalantly. Then, he began speaking.

"Good evening, ladies and gentleman. Sorry to bother you for a while. I'm afraid you all can't continue your chat if your answer doesn't satisfy me."


	9. The Battlefield of the Dusk

**I'm back everyone, with a new chapter. This one is more like a battle scene, I'm not so good in writing that, so give me opinion! Enjoy!  
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**Chapter 9: The Battlefield of the Dusk**

Another thunder stormed against Itsuwa's ears again whilst she was doing her activity.

She looked at the darkened sky through the window, being completely mesmerized by the continuous thunder and the bitter draft that the environment appeared to provide for today and only for today. It was not a usual day, Itsuwa must admit. The crackling sound of thunder had become her only friend in Touma's apartment since the dawn of the day, and even though she indeed knew that the weather was so usual and so suitable in the autumn, she couldn't help but having such a bad feeling regarding the weather itself. And no matter how paranoid and how attached she was to the superstitious things, she could know that the townspeople didn't have the same weird feeling. This was Academy City, after all.

Itsuwa was back to her cutting board again; all of her attentions were given now to the carrot that she was chopping since three minutes ago. She did her job with the equivalence of the expert, cutting the bigger part into tiny pieces as though it was some kind of artistic sculpture. A white apron could be seen covering her body, wrapping her in delight, exposing another kind of suitable appearance that she could wear. The purple haired girl knew that she could chop the carrot in ease without even looking, but rather than sacrificing her own finger in process (out of deliberate action) she decided to focus more on it.

As if the harmonic music of chopping sound could drive her to sleep, she released a low yawn between chops, lifting the knife a little and covering her mouth in process, and the chopping sound was heard again after a span of seconds. She let the tears drenching her eyes slightly, being completely indifferent towards the blurry sight that she received because of the excessive water. Just after a while, the tears had finally evaporated completely; a trigger for her to direct her attention to her upper left, looking at the clock which would be never bored of moving gradually.

05.30 pm.

She let out a heavy sigh, taking a look at the front door whilst the water vapor disappeared at the hollow space. Her eyes stared deeply at the lifeless door, demanding the appearance of a certain spiky haired guy to enter the door and smiled at her. It was indeed true that around this time, the said guy would eventually returned to his dormitory; reaching his knees as he breathed hard frequently (and Itsuwa knew that his misfortune must drive him doing something crazy again). But then, he would greet her, whether in nonchalant, bored, or vibrant ways. It was not something crucial or essential for those who only considered him as an acquaintance, but for someone who had certain… affection to him, those little things that he did could be something more for her.

And she buried her attention again to her own thought; the lack of sound of chopping sound became the only proof of her self thinking. It was hilarious to know that an atheist guy just like Kamijou Touma could drive her crazy like this, and for the reason that only she could know, she didn't mind at all. The gray hue from the remaining gloomy twilight was ignored completely by her own thinking; and she would be dead first if her brain acknowledged that the spiky haired guy was not her love interest anymore.

Out of the blue, an explosion could be heard. Her twin of eternity widened slightly because of the surprising sound, letting all of her reflex to take the leader's role of her action. She looked at the window again hastily, only to find that the sight had stupefied her and her dinner must be delayed for this day. Her mouth was agape in shock, staring at the sight in awe as her grip on the knife was loosened, even though it was still enough to maintain its position in Itsuwa's hand.

There, at one side of Academy City, soaring smoke could be seen, reaching high to the sky above as though it tried to reach the heaven, only to be blocked by the thick clouds as if they were protecting the gate of heaven. Just under the pole of smoke, Itsuwa could vaguely observe that the said place was battered a little bit, fully showed by crushed walls and visible ruins, and Itsuwa could know, that whatever things or humans that could do something like this must wield an incredible power. The thunder for a hundredth time reached the earth again, as though it tried to give some kind of background in the painting of Tower of Thunder in Tarot Card.

Her cell phone vibrated and rang all of the sudden, snapping her back to the reality after she was mesmerized by the horrendous scenery for a fraction of time. Quickly, she snatched the cell phone from her pocket, and without letting her eyes to take a sight on the screen that revealed the caller of the phone, she moved it towards her ears as she began listening to the habitual greeting from a voice whose tone she had known since her birth. It was Tatemiya Saiji.

"Hello? Itsuwa?" her senior and representative of Amakusa church greeted her, with a tone which showed his usual flexibility and cheerfulness that he always showed to his comrades. But beyond that, she could sense a weird feeling, a feeling which somehow would crush her shoulders in shattered pieces behind the easy talk that Tatemiya Saiji had said. "I just want to inform you that the magician had arrived in Academy City, so it would be better for you to prepare for… Itsuwa? Hello?"

His line was cut off when Tatemiya Saiji realized that his speech was replied only by the sound of falling cell phone on the floor. Indeed, Itsuwa had stormed off; dashing quickly to the explosion's scene without letting her tiredness overwhelmed her, as though she was some kind of knight who would save those in needs. The only thing that was last seen which could show Itsuwa's presence around the peripheral area of Touma's dormitory was a flash of her spear; the weapon that she had grinded down everyday in case something was bad happened.

Itsuwa grimaced slightly between her paces. It would be today.

* * *

><p>The flash of lightning was the one who managed to wake the sleeping beauty up.<p>

The hazel haired girl opened her eyes in horror at the same time the white hue of lightning that penetrated the room slapped her face. Her stare at the ceiling above was replied by lifeless look from it, trying to realize the place which she was resided in. It only needed a span of seconds for her to be aware of her whereabouts, as she started to rising up from her lying state; eyes closing, trying to remedy a slight pain that one always got from the long-time slumber. She opened her eyes again tardily, catching the sight of blank screen of the plasma television which she watched just a moment before she slept.

And the thunder snapped her again to the reality after some amount of self-thinking, being the only creation nearby that could produce loud sound as its resonance tried to crush the ear drums that Misaka Mikoto had. She just let the nature did its activity; eyes rolling around the peripheral area, and for a fraction of seconds, even though she didn't want to admit it, she just realized that she was waiting for the appearance of a certain spiky haired guy to greet her again, whether in a sarcastic way or not.

A slight of pain stung her on the head, trying to remind her condition of being sick. The said hazel haired girl ruffled her hair a little bit, being unconcern towards the messy characteristic and just let the pain dissipated for each massage that she had given. After some moments of blank look and void mind, her brain began fulfilling itself with the figure of a certain spiky haired guy that didn't show up until now; awful prejudice became the only subject that led all of her thoughts for a second. And for that, she released an inaudible mumble even though she acknowledged that it wouldn't be replied by anyone, for she knew that she addressed the mutter only to her.

"That idiot, I hope he won't do anything stupid again."

She looked at the window at the left side of hers, completely mesmerized by the sight of thundering clouds and silver hue that was raging around every corner of the azure sky. It appeared that even dusk was reluctant to hassle the gloomy scenery, staying annoyingly at the sky, trying to make the civilians forgot about the existence of upcoming night and creation of the stars and the moon. It also reflected the thought that the said Railgun was having, as every thought of the bitter draft returned to the image of Kamijou Touma.

She didn't really know what kind of cruel destiny had led him to bear something as heavy as what he was facing now. He was so young, yet so brave and pitiful, painstakingly enduring the weight of the world on his gnarled shoulders, staying on the path that had been chosen by the demon and having no place to escape because of his tendency to meddle with other's affairs just because of stupid principle that would never reach success. What she could do was just seeing him battered and slaughtered heavily by everybody that wanted his death and the death of his dearest friends. She couldn't do anything… she was weak… she was…

…pathetic.

Even after his memory loss, after he shouldn't have anything to think about, after he should take a rest after dearly-forgotten memories, he still strived to help everybody in needs, as though it was his habitual action that couldn't be forgotten by him. The hazel haired girl's mind wandered to the time when he decided to help her saving Misaka Imouto, even though recently she knew, that it was just after his memory loss. He could just go to his ordinary life and didn't care about her anymore, because indeed, he didn't know an individual called Misaka Mikoto at all; all memories had been forgotten, changed into a certain blank look when he firstly saw her face. Nevertheless, even though Misaka Mikoto was just a 'stranger' for him that time, he didn't even think of not caring her at all. It was no longer an unspoken for him, it was a law.

And what's the result? He was battered, attacked by every kind of offensive moves by the strongest esper in Academy City, crawling on the dirty concrete as he tried to catch every glimpse of breath as though the air would be gone in a fraction of seconds. His swaying figure accentuated his dying body, adorned by the odor of dust although his eyes could show every hint of the lack of regrets for everything that he had done for a stranger: Misaka Mikoto. He managed to live and breathe again though, even though he must creep from the valley of the death with broken legs and bruised skin.

And her? She was just watching all the horrible scenery, gritting her teeth for her powerlessness, and what she could do to reply was just a box of cookies. How pathetic.

Ironically, that idiot, Kamijou Touma, was the one that Misaka Mikoto really loved.

She always confronted her in front of the memorial vending machine (that was just some kind of accident! Don't you think more than that!), not because she wanted to meet her (she would never admit it to anyone), but also, she wanted to check the condition of the spiky haired guy. She even knew when he would show up in front of the vending machine (no, she's not a stalker!) through countless experiences. And through process, she knew that when his figure was not seen there, he must be involved into another calamity.

Just like now, he was out of her watch, and she feared that he would return with twisted ankle and bloodied body.

Misaka Mikoto let out a heavy sigh again whilst her eyes were closed in sync, trying to erase any kind of prejudices that flew to her brain just since she woke up. Her own thinking tasted foreign to her brain, because: first, she never thought about a male friend too much, and second, being paranoid was not her style. She took another glance to the window, looking at another thunder that showed up. The said hazel haired girl covered her body with the blanket and tried to sleep, hoping for the God of Protection to always guard Kamijou Touma.

Unbeknownst to her, the soaring smoke that covered the draft was located out of her sight, and her hope for the protection for the spiky haired boy was shattered into pieces.

* * *

><p>The whizzing sound of bullets shooting never left Yomikawa Aiho's ears.<p>

Fully equipped with metal clothes and bullet-resist armor, she shouldn't have any trouble in dealing with any kind of circumstances that lurked in the darkness of Academy City. Moreover, she was a trained Anti-skill's member, skilled undoubtedly in shooting, self-defense, martial arts, strength, agility, vitality, and dexterity in targeting enemies. Heaped up beneath the perfect lady-like beauty and graceful eyes of Yomikawa Aiho, was a strong, tomboyish being, wrapped carefully and nicely with a sense of justice and segregation-hater, something that drove a lady like her joined the Anti-Skill and even being one of the most reliable captains in it.

But had she trained in dealing with monstrous creature? No, she hadn't

She ducked her head for a hundredth time this day; her action was followed by ten other Anti-Skill's members who were late slightly in acknowledging the incoming danger. Just when the last head had been protected by a tall fallen wall on the road, a huge blast was the one who slapped a fragment of air over their heads, creating a massive creater that Yomikawa would be sure to be remained the same for another century. The strong blast was joined with strong wind as an impact, as she found it hard to maintain its balance for a fraction of second. Yomikawa Aiho could know from a single glance that if she got one-clean hit from the said beam, she would be a dead meat.

Nevertheless, she didn't even think to shiver or to hesitate a single bit. Just when she analyzed that it was safe to return her firing, she stood up again, showing a part of her head whose existence was ignored compared to the massive machine gun which she took from the ground beside her. She pulled the trigger; bullets were shot in less than a second, bombarding the said creature without mercy. The said creature just roared more, and it was more than angry now.

This was hell.

All her comrades returned firing their respective machine guns, as all of the sound of bullets shooting joined and provided the ears a certain impromptu music that one could mistake as the footsteps of the Knight of Apocalypse. Whatever it was, just the time countless bullets hit the said green creature, it groaned in pain, buying her some time to reflect everything that had occurred just fifteen minutes ago. So, her mind wandered to that time; all the terrible sceneries in her sight became only visible shadows of solid thunder that crawled from the darkness of the earth.

It was just a usual call from a paranoid civilian, just like what she remembered. The informant just said that she heard a loud explosion when she just exited the Underground Mall, and she requested the arrival of the Anti-Skill, fearing that the explosion would be some kind of prologue to another terrible story. Indeed, since the invasion to the Academy City from a certain force that even Anti-Skill didn't know, all the civilians became more and more afraid towards something vague and unimportant. Nevertheless, the informant appeared to be so truthful and so scared, and an explosion was not a simple thing that could be disregarded by the Anti-Skill, who devoted themselves for the safety of Academy City.

So there they were, the valiant soldiers of Anti-Skill came to the rescue. Just when they stopped their paces at the entrance of the Underground Mall, they could know that the explosion indeed occurred, showed vividly by soaring smoke and shattered glasses, but for unknown reason, it appeared that the guests and customers of the said mall were not there; the lack of shadows became the thing that conclude their opinions. It was as if the guests had known the incoming explosion, or something had driven them out just from before. They just on their first step in the said mall when the unexpected occurred.

From the unseen pitfall on the ground, a monster was summoned from there. It was five meters long and it could fly… or floated on the opened air. The monster took the shape of a seemed-like dragon without feet; just a pair of limbs that protruded from his body. It was stained with green hue, different from its brown horns that were plastered on its head; with a snout that carried the smell of hell or the underworld or even both. Its growl spread to the peripheral area, bringing fear to everyone who had heard them, and they would find it hard not to dig a hole to hide on the spot. Imagine the scariest dragon that you could image, this monster was tenth times scarier than that. All of the shapes, the characteristics of the dragon… it was despicable.

And they were now there; taking a shelter each time the monster took its turn to attack, delaying their continuous shooting in order to destroy the said monster. It was very lucky that until now, her comrades were still there on the spot, even though it appeared that their breaths were on the verge of dying. The other fortunate fact was that the said monster didn't appear to have any intention to exit its nest: the entrance of the Underground mall, as though it was some kind of lost child that it must protect. It was just charging from a distance, wiping its long tail to hit them and released a certain beam from its mouth occasionally. The captain of Anti-Skill and her underlings would have been sure to run flatly to the Underground Mall if only those claws didn't seem so sharp and so dangerous.

And another beam just hit the space beside their 'shelter', creating a big hole on the road, as the nearest member of Anti-Skill was agape; face became full of horror, being grateful for an inch of fortune that had been given to him. Yomikawa Aiho didn't want to imagine what would happen when the said blast hit her fellow.

Just how could a dragon enter the Academy City anyway?

* * *

><p>The condition was hell.<p>

The spiky haired guy managed to dodge an amount of bricks and ruins of wall that his enemy threw… or maybe 'controlled' frantically. If only it was not because of the years of experience in dealing with thugs, Kamijou Touma would be sure that the bricks had hit him, for his reflex mustn't be so reactive compared to now. Even when he could be proud of his experience, he got hit twice on the abdomen by the bricks, with a burst of blood from his mouth became the proof of the high intensity of the hit. His clothes were adorned with crystals of ice from previous attack, and he was bruised all over, with the dust that stained a portion of his face. At least he could still run and dodge further throwing from his enemy up to now, even though his eyes were half blurred and half blinded by the thick dust as a certain impact from the throw. For a very good reason, the messy haired magician that became his enemy kept a distance with him, and he found himself in the same condition when he was fighting Acqua of the Back. This guy was clever and brilliant.

Just when the first time the messy haired guy whose age didn't seem to even pass his confronted them, Kamijou Touma could somehow know the meaning of evil and danger. He asked them where Misaka Mikoto was, and for a very good reply, he just pretended that he didn't know her at all. It appeared that Saten Ruiko, the middle school girl that Touma and Fukiyose met a moment ago knew the hazel haired girl too, but her answer was also the same with Kamijou Touma, as though both of them sensed some kind of wicked power and hazardous, and also, bizarre event if they told him where Misaka Mikoto was.

So the said guy revealed himself as a magician, truly showed by his lack of patience in dealing with a situation (not all magicians were similar to him) and the way his stare appeared to be so familiar in Touma's point of view (it was just his prejudice). His hand took a card from the short-forgotten cardbox, and pointing it to the middle school girl with a blank look. Just around the time Touma finally acknowledged the situation they were in, a blast of air hit the stomach of the said girl, knocking her off until her body crushed the wall behind her, leaving a small crack on the wall. Fukiyose Seiri released a low shriek that Touma would never forget, pacing herself to approach the poor Sakugawa Middle School girl. The said messy-haired magician drew another card, directing it to the running figure of Touma's female classmates. A black beam was formed from the card, nearly hitting Fukiyose if only Touma didn't block it with Imagine Breaker.

The said magician gave him a blank look for a moment, as though he tried to know the power that lied on Touma's right hand and analyze a good strategy to defeat him. He didn't give Touma much time to approach him and give him a good punch, for he took another card from the box, and a glacial wind was formed from the card, only to be blocked by the Imagine Breaker even though his figure was trailed back because of the aftermath from the icy wind. With that, Touma knew, that the said magician had a new strategy, fully showed by his grinning face with an expression as though he cursed Touma to die on the spot.

He took a different card, mumbling some spells from language that Touma didn't know, and directing it to Kamijou Touma nonchalantly. And the bricks from the wall behind him began moving, speeding themselves to attack Touma as his mouth was agape for the variety of spells that this magician could have. The whizzing sound of the bricks could even match a bullet, just until they succeeded to give tremendous pain to Touma's abdoment. He vomitted a portion of blood, clutching for his stomach in agony. Another bricks missed his hair a little, and he regained his usual composure for the fear of being hit.

At least all of the magician's attention was given to him now, not to Fukiyose Seiri or Ruiko Saten (it appeared Fukiyose had taken Saten to a safer place, Touma thought).

Right now, the magician took another card from the cardbox, doing his usual pattern of attack, and with that, he pointed the card to the floor. And all fragments of the floor began exploding frantically, forming a line to the dodging figure of the spiky haired guy, cleaving the space into two different parts. The sudden explosion blasted the spiky haired guy away, until his body hit a cupboard behind. It was very lucky for him for not eating so much until now, or else, he would spit out again and again. But, on the opposite side, he was doomed because the cupboard befell him because of the crush, trapping him on the ground with a stupid cuboard on his body.

Not giving any moment for the spiky haired guy to react or to even breathe, the messy haired magician took another card, and lifted it as though the card demanded everybody's attention for it. Touma's weakened sensory receptors caught a glimpse of loud shout from foreign language, and he could swear that he saw a big mystical demon goat behind the silhouette of the magician. He could feel a strange breeze around, and from the shadows that existed on the ground, a large amount of black beings... taking the form of knights, were formed. They wielded their own respective swords; their visible interior body was hollow as the proof of their lifeless characteristics. Ten, twenty, no, around forty black knights had been created, stifling the said room as they began approaching the trapped body of Kamijou Touma, trying to finish him.

He needed miracle to escape from this calamity.

"Ah, so you give up already?" the said magician said to him from a distance, with nasty tone that adorned his calm and collected figure. "I must say that not many people can last long from my spell. Five spells. You've done a great fight, even though I didn't even break a sweat," he continued. Touma gritted his teeth for his weak being and powerlessness, lamenting the fact that he was indeed, useless, because the Imagine Breaker couldn't protect him speedy attacks, for his right hand couldn't react that fast. Now that he was trapped, he couldn't even use Imagine Breaker at all. "It appears that your right hand wields an erasing power, being able to take on the Beam of Darkness without even a scratch. You're great, but I'm sorry, you have to die. Now."

And the nearest black hollow knight lifted his sword, giving it a certain kind of preparation to cut down the powerless figure of the spiky haired guy. The said Touma gritted his teeth even more, bracing himself for the impact of the stab or the cut from the sword. Ah well, at least his death would be fast. But even though he had no hopes left, he was still, having a vague hope of miracle.

Miracle really happened.

A spear out of the blue came out of nowhere, striking through the strong armor of the black knight as though it was just a pile of papers. The spear reached the ground below the knight, splitting itself into two. And just like every other fairy tale about the magnificent beasts, the said hollow knight shattered into pieces, much smaller than any broken mirror. With that occurence, all the attentions of the hollow knights, the magician, and Kamijou Touma changed to the spear, as their eyes tried to find the individual who had thrown the weapon before.

They didn't really need to find it, because the savior had come without any call. It was the purple haired girl from the Amakusa Church, who landed safely and gracefully on the ground next to trapped Touma and stabbed spear. With a determined look implanted momentarily on her face, she stared at the other magician, trying to analyze her next opponent. She took the spear from the ground in ease as though it was just some kind of toys that she had played since kindergarten, pointing it to the other magician as though it was some kind of dead threat. Her short hair was fluttered a little bit by a sudden howling wind from the aura that the two magicians had, announcing the upcoming, bloody battle that would happen when the two sides clashed.

"Itsuwa?" Touma said; eyes became wide, full of shock because of the sudden appearance of the Amakusa Church's member. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, you seem troubled, Kamijou-san," Itsuwa said, rolling her eyes to see that at least the spiky haired guy wouldn't do anything reckless anymore (he indeed should be trapped there and avoided any danger). "Let me help you a little bit."

Kamijou Touma could faintly hear the sound of unsheating swords joined with the others, and his eyes could see the shining black swords from every knight that appeared to prepare an attack to the death. Itsuwa, on the other hand, just do what she should do from the first time. One had fallen, thirty-nine more to be defeated.

And she dashed.

* * *

><p>The battle had turned out in Itsuwa's favor, Touma must admit.<p>

She was really a beast in the battlefield, a valuable asset in the battle of Sekigahara if only she was born much earlier than the present. She dodged, she ducked, she stabbed, she swung, she ran in the battlefield as though she was created there and her purpose of life was only to battle (even though her heart warming figure really contradicted that). She charged on the battlefield with her usual purple tank-top as though it was some kind of magical armor that couldn't be destroyed. Her reflex was so good that the black knight couldn't even give her a scratch, as though they paused momentarily by Itsuwa's prowess in battlefield. Just when the first wave of knights approached her, they would only shatter in pieces because of the spear.

The spiky haired guy too, in a better state. He almost succeeded escaping from a certain annoying cupboard that trapped him until now. Maybe, he would charge to the battlefield if only the cupboard was not there, and joined Itsuwa's work without any hesitation ( or maybe even ordered Itsuwa to stay out of his way with his usual irresponsible talk). Touma Kamijou just considered it as a misfortune, again and again.

Itsuwa leaped on the battlefield, locating herself to one part of the space that could make her getting a good site which could cover all the opposite sides. She prepared a battle stance, stabbing her spear to the floor with so much force that it could even crack the porcelain a little. She closed her eyes momentarily; mouth began releasing a spell just after her twin of eternity were opened.

"Nanasen."

And the invisible sharp threads of death had appeared from her spear, charging to the remaining black knights which approached her without any knowledge of their upcoming destiny. The invisible threads were so many and so strong that it could even scratch the floor and the wall, as though it was some kind of invisible sword that floated and quickened themselves to the enemy. The forgotten dust was lifted from the floor as one of the impact of the spell, blinding the spiky haired guy's eyes from seeing how the battle went.

And from the fog of dust, he could hear another vague sound of shattering glasses, telling him that another knight had fallen to another crevice of disappearance. Nevertheless, he could also hear another sound that joined the calamity from the outside. It appeared to be a certain explosion from something that he didn't really know what, and the countless whizzing sound of bullets could be heard faintly. It appeared that there was another battle outside.

The impromptu sound from the outside was forgotten entirely when his eyes could see a glimpse of silhouette of Itsuwa, without nobody stood around her. The fog had lifted entirely, revealing the sight of hers who had stood above all the defeated ones, whose appearances were only shown by the shattering black glasses. Touma's eyes widened in surprise. It appeared that Itsuwa had been stronger than before.

"You are strong too, and very skilled in martial arts," the magician said, revealing himself from the darkness of the shadow without a scratch, as though the sharp threads were nothing. Itsuwa frowned her face a little bit, standing in awe when she observed that the said magician indeed wasn't injured by her attack at all. "Maybe, I will defeat you..." he took another card from the cardbox. "...with this."

He took the card, mumbling some spells again. Then, he plastered the card on his hand, and with that, the card was absorbed by his skin. Just a moment after the card had been absorbed, the said magician grinned, and from both of his hands, a pair of daggers were formed, protruding from his skin as though they had been implanted from his birth. Touma and Itsuwa stared in awe, yet another upcoming hazard that they must face.

The said magician charged now to Itsuwa, clashing both of their respective weapons just around the time the dusk had eventually appeared outside. The clash was so strong that even Touma could feel the clash from a distance, and both sides were trailed back after the said clash. And both of them didn't give any time to breathe, to acknowledge the situation they were in, or even to analyze a good strategy to counter both ability. They just clashed at each other, finding it better to trust on their own weapons in the battle.

Kamijou Touma stared in awe, finding it hard to find a word that could describe their own prowess in the battle, because there was really no any human's words that could describe them. They played their weapons easily, bringing shame to those martial art's teachers who had crafted their ability since their youth. After five minutes that appeared to be ten hours they battled each other, none of them could barely give each other a sratch, and Touma must say, that it was the first time Itsuwa's face became that serious. It even defeated her determined face when she fought Acqua of the Back.

This magician... was stronger than Acqua?

Itsuwa leaped backwards, stabbing her spear to the floor and produced another Nanasen. The invisible threads appeared again for the second time, charging themselves to the direction of the other magician without mercy. Nevertheless, the said magician didn't even dodge the upcoming sharp threads. He was just there, preparing a stance to counter the said threads. Just when the threads nearly hit him, he swung his dagger, perfectly maneuvering the threads to another direction. The other threads met the same fate, as the magician perpetually swung his daggers wildly. Just after the threads had finally gone, he charged to Itsuwa again, who countered the clash with her spear.

And they trailed back again for the second time.

The magician didn't even break a single sweat until now, as though he had perfected his prowess in battle since his youth. Itsuwa though, nearly fainted because of the speedy battle. Indeed, she was also trained and experienced in battle, but she appeared to be exhausted. It was very great for a girl like her to put a good fight against this magician, Touma must say.

Kamijou Touma finally released himself from the trapping cupboard, as he made his way to Itsuwa's side. She indeed appeared to be very tired and exhausted, and he observed that she started producing cold sweat. It appeared that each clash with the said other magician drained her life, and for anything that he was capable doing after each class, he didn't want to know.

"It's a pain to fight you two," the said magician said from a distance, taking off his daggers as they were gone in a fraction of seconds. "Maybe I'll be leaving now, but I'm sure we will meet again," he said nonchalantly.

"Just who are you and what do you want here!" Touma barked at him, demanding an explanation from him.

"Oh, right, I haven't introduced myself right?" The said magician smirked. "My name is Raven, Raven Huer to be exact," he then started taking another card from his usual cardbox. "My magician name is..."

He directed the card to Itsuwa's body.

"...cruevo471."

And just the time he said that, Itsuwa's eyes widened in fear. She looked at the hollow space below, as though it was some kind of majesty that a great entity had created. Her legs gave up supporting her, and with that, she trailed off, muscles began becoming to weak to keep standing, and she fell to the lifeless floor beneath.

"Itsuwa!"

"...the destroyer of life, the representative of darkness."

And with that, the said magician was gone, together with the disappearance of the shadows. Kamijou Touma didn't care though, because all of his mind now was thinking about a figure of sleeping beauty who had fainted because of something that he didn't really know. He knelt down, lifting Itsuwa's body by the hands and shook her frantically. No reaction.

"ITSUUUUUWAAAA!"

**So that's that, the battle scene, hope you enjoy it! O yeah, I found it better if readers review me, because I will be encouraged by each review that you all give regarding the story. So please give review and opinion, if you don't mind? And also, I need opinion about the story who should become my priority. A one-shot, 'The Angel of Thunder', or 'Whisper'. Please suggest what you want and review!  
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	10. The Aftermath

**_Hello guys, sorry for a very looonnggg update. I'm having some family issues and also, school is so hard nowadays. _**

**_Anyway, I read from Wikipedia that the NT2 has been released, and there, the meeting of Misaka Mikoto and Kamijou Touma was written. Actually, I also wrote a fic about their meeting, but I must say, that Kazura Kamachi appears to be so unfair towards Mikoto. Really, she has gone to Russia to save Touma, but what she gets was just a holding hand, saying that 'You will not be alone anymore' and that's that? While Index, the one who just stayed in England, just wondering where Touma is and doesn't seem to worry about anything but food, can meet Touma earlier and live together with him. That's unfair~! (sorry, I'm a little bit pissed, MikotoxTouma fan. Hehehe)_**

**_Ah, well... to the story! Hope you like it, and please review? Please?_  
><strong>

**Chapter 10: The Aftermath**

Yomikawa Aiho didn't really understand the mix of her own emotions at the moment. Grievance, exasperation, tiredness, or any thousand other negative feelings were swaying her around, giving more headache in each span of seconds that had been given. She mumbled in silence, muttering in such profanity that could make a low thug shivered in fear and surprise. Standing on the dirty concrete around the mist of blinding dust, she clenched her fist slightly, being very angry for the previous experience that could mottle her pride and dignity as the captain of Anti Skill. And for another three minutes, she could still be seen; mind trying to wipe up any scenery of ruins and falling bricks in a blink, even though she knew that doing something like that was futile.

In front of her was the former scenery of war, or maybe it could be worse than that. Even though the view was not covered with blood or dead corpses, it was still frightening to be spotted. The entrance of Underground Mall was nothing but another debris of fallen building, settling themselves on the lifeless ground whilst another gust of dust began covering the area. The dismal color of destruction and gloom permeated the sky, and the ruin began heaping up on the infested ground. The medics and ambulances surrounded the place, treating the other members of Anti-Skill that were perhaps injured from the battle. The captain of Anti-Skill sank into another deeper thought, staring at the battlefield with such profound as though she had failed her long-life mission.

"Y-Y-Y-Yomikawa-san? Are you injured?" Tesshou Tsuzuri, the timeless comrade and friend of Yomikawa Aiho succeeded to catch her attention from behind, and being a polite girl that suited her beauty which could match a super model, she faced her nonchalantly. The green haired woman's slender body was covered by full battle armor, and her face had been stained by dust and a few visible scratches that wouldn't take long to recover. Aside of those, she appeared to be okay.

"No, I'm okay, Tesshou," Yomikawa answered in conviction. Maybe her physical condition was all right, thanks for the continuous training in Anti-Skill hideout, but her mental condition was falling, as it was the first time she failed in a mission. The corner of her dainty eyes caught the sight of another member of Anti-Skill that was taken by the ambulance, and every thought of hers started to change into another uncomfortable feeling that could make another sleepless night for her: concern.

"How about those students? Have they been taken care of?" the captain inquired, demanding a question from her green-haired underling that remained silent behind. It appeared that she also, thought of the same thing as her. Yomikawa was not surprised though, for Tesshou was originally a thinker and a melancholic woman, and she was still confused until now why the green-haired woman decided to join the Anti-Skill.

"They are okay," Tesshou answered almost too quickly that Yomikawa frowned a little bit for that. "They had been sent to the hospital by the first ambulance," she continued her statement.

"Glad to know that."

And the conversation stopped just when the last ambulance had gone to the nearest hospital. The remaining members of Anti-Skill were seen taking care of the pedestrians who began approaching the area, being clearly infatuated by the destroyed gate of Underground Mall that exposed the effect of chaos that threw the captain of Anti-Skill into nothing but bewilderment. The mass was growing bigger and bigger, and it began forming crowd traffic on the road. Nonetheless, Yomikawa's thought was not given to the crowd or any other present moments; past became the only thing that she tried to reveal, she tried to acknowledge and understand. Her question, even though she didn't have any clue to answer and she was even reluctant to answer if she had it, was spoken with such hesitation by the individual called Tesshou Tsuzuri beside her.

"W-w-w-what was that creature that attacked us?" Tesshou asked even though the words appeared to be so difficult to be released from her mouth, because judging by the way she looked and the aura that was emanated by Yomikawa Aiho, it appeared that she didn't really want to hear the said question. Nevertheless, still, Tesshou's curiosity gave her more courage to speak, even though she was shivering a little bit for that.

The answer was just like what Tesshou had expected.

"I don't know," Yomikawa answered almost as fast as the light itself, because indeed, she didn't have more farfetched answer that could be given to the girl in question. Other possibilities began spinning around the captain of Anti-Skill's head, even though it could only create more pieces of puzzle to solve the riddle. "What I saw, or maybe, what we saw was only a dragon. Big…"

"…strong. Fierce…Cruel...Blasting beam on us…" Tesshou continued, as though she had been waiting for her moment and chance to speak.

"… and disappeared from our sight almost as blurry as the way it appeared," Yomikawa ended the description that would take more than ten minutes only to characterize the ferocity of the dragon (Tesshou was also the teacher, after all). "Really Tesshou, I don't know what we fought back then. I had fought so many types of threats and enemies until now, but this time, I don't get it at all," she answered. She sighed; face-palming herself lightly as though it was the punishment for her ignorance and the choking feeling that burdened her chest had nothing to do with the thick dust that incapacitated her breath. The said captain of Anti-Skill would take note to ask her mother regarding fairy tales about dragon later.

"Oh yeah, one more thing, Yomikawa-San," Tesshou said, and the captain of Anti-Skill could sense another awkward incidents that could only be relieved by one-week vacation at the beach. "I got a report that the inner part of Underground mall also experienced damage. From the ruin inside the Underground Mall itself, it seems that the damage was not caused by our weapon or the creature we fought at all," she said.

"Huh? How come?" Yomikawa said. She began thinking that her beloved city had gone insane as another delusion of action and slight horror movies began spreading in her brain. And with that, all parts of her brain started progressing fast, creating more conclusions that would only discard the other one. Until at one time, when her brain had flickered open, the best conclusion had passed through and she said it uncertainly.

"Another battle occurred inside the mall? But we just found four teenagers there…" she said. "And also, how did you know that…"

"The debris…" Tesshou said, facing down the concrete beneath as she peeked the captain of Anti-Skill from the corner of her eyes; fearing that the words that she was going to say would trigger Yomikawa to bite her. "The debris is very unusual. We found out the remaining of ice on the concrete and pillars, the some vivid traces of scrapes of sharps were everywhere," she said timidly.

"Scrapes of sharps? Swords you mean? We are not in the Edo period you know. Just basically, what has happened there?" Yomikawa inquired. She stared deeply on the said green-haired woman, trying to rummage the potential answer that could satisfy every whimsical thing that had happened.

"I don't know," the green haired woman answered frankly, closing her eyes as though it was her fault for not knowing the answer that her friend really wanted. Her answer made Yomikawa sighed casually, finding out that maybe only God could provide the best answer for her.

"Fuh, Tesshou…"

"Y-y-y-yeah?" Tesshou faced her, right around the time when she was bored of staring at the lifeless, holey road and pavement, startled to hear the sudden low, yet audible words from her superior, because indeed, she didn't expect her to say anything in particular.

Yomikawa closed her eyes, shifting any further thought that could only give her more headaches. After some moment, her eyelids lifted open, revealing the visible landmark that she wouldn't forget. The dust had gradually fading, allowing her sight to work more and more effectively, only to find out that maybe the scenery of ruins that could have an equivalence with deserted city would be better be covered by thick mist of dust. But there she was, standing still, staying on her silent vigil as her brain tried to put on every educative word that could be spoken by such fluency from the tongue of Yomikawa Aiho. Until she finally said it, even though there was no any conviction in her words and Tesshou Tsuzuri frowned a little for the uncertainty and oddity of answer.

"Nothing."

And she left, leaving the green-haired teacher in perplexity.

* * *

><p>"Thank you so very much for taking care of her!"<p>

Uiharu Kazari bowed her head with such modesty that could make a loyal nun shamefaced in awe, closing her eyes subconsciously in an effort to avoid eye contact with the high school girl in front of her. She remained hesitantly for a fraction of seconds in her position, waiting for any kind of reaction that Fukiyose Seiri would give even though it would only spread an awkward silence around the circle they were in. Had there been any other ways to bow her head much lower, the Sakugawa middle school girl didn't doubt to do it, ashamed or not. The room in which Ruiko Saten stayed was circled by familial odor of medicine, but it still didn't stop Uiharu from showing the utmost gratitude that she could give to her best friend's savior.

"It's okay," Fukiyose Seiri answered; her flawless fingers found themselves scratching her own cheek in order to avoid further embarrassment. "I didn't do anything so great in particular too anyway, and also, I'm not the one you should thank so much to the extent of bowing your head politely like that," she shrugged off, trying to act cool and indifferent towards the situation even though to be honest, she was, knowing her attitude and all, not so suitable with an exaggerating gratitude for heroic action she had just done. Well, she was not a certain spiky haired guy who would never stop spitting embarrassing lines, after all.

"B-b-b-but," Uiharu peeked in from the corner of her eyes, braving the shyness that could be seen vividly in her never ending black-of eternity. "You have saved the life of my best and my only friend. I don't know what I would do if I lost her," she said frankly, being undoubtedly honest of her own feeling regarding the sleeping girl who was called Ruiko Saten. The said girl was sleeping soundly at the moment; her left cheek was covered with white bandage and her stomach was bruised a little. Nevertheless, blind man or not, it appeared that the girl would wake up soon, knowing her lack of injuries and also, her cheerfulness and spirit in living, of course.

"Ah, uhh… I just…" Fukiyose muttered slightly, shifting her gaze to another direction, because indeed, she didn't know what to look at. And then, just after some moments of strange silence that were stained only by the dozing sound of Saten Ruiko, the breaker of ice appeared from the door, and it didn't take more than a second for Uiharu to acknowledge the one who entered the scene from the color and style of her hair. Yeah, the good old Misaka Mikoto with her usual Tokiwadai uniform was back.

"Uiharu!" Misaka Mikoto, the Railgun, the Ace of Tokiwadai, the hazel haired girl, or whoever you wanted to call her, entered the room with heavy pants and sweat could be seen vaguely from her face. It didn't take more than another second for Uiharu to know that the said girl was running all over the way from any location she was in previously to the hospital, and Fukiyose's gaze was fixed to the tea-colored hair girl. "I heard that Saten-san was injured, is she okay?' she inquired hastily, demanding any positive question to the girl whose appearance was distinguished from the big flower ribbon that she always wore, and regarding that, all of her friends started thinking whether the flowers on her ribbon were really alive or not.

"Calm down, Misaka-san," Uiharu answered, even though she should know that Misaka Mikoto, looking from her past attitude of being very vibrant, impatient, and hasty, something that shattered the image of princess just like what others perceived the hazel haired girl to be, couldn't wait for any single second just until she got the information about her friend. Nevertheless, still, Mikoto appeared to be so worried as though the Four Horsemen of Apocalypse were the one who attacked Ruiko. And the thought inside Uiharu's mind clicked, acknowledging that Ruiko was her second best friend that was injured by whatever had done in Academy City after a certain teleporter called Shirai Kuroko. Uiharu found herself smiling calmly knowing the fact.

"She is okay," Fukiyose was the one who answered, her visage was softened slightly, seeing that the girl she had saved must be very lucky for having friends that were concerned of her own state. "The doctor said that she should wake up soon, you don't need to worry about her," she continued.

"Huff, glad to hear that," the hazel haired girl sighed in relief, and the burden that lurked down slowly to destroy her gnarled shoulders when she heard the information about Ruiko Saten dissipated drastically as she rested her body to the wall behind her. "By the way, who are you? An acquaintance of Uiharu?' she asked swiftly, just after her eyes spotted an unknown person residing in the hospital's room.

"She is Fukiyose Seiri-san," Uiharu said almost swiftly just around the time Fukiyose opened her mouth. Her voice sounded much enthusiastic and less awkward, introducing the savior of her best friend in glee. "She is the one who saved Ruiko Saten back then," she resumed her statement.

"You did?" Mikoto said in awe. Locking her gaze towards the figure of Fukiyose Seiri, her lip managed to curve upwards, forming a smile that showed nothing but pure happiness and gratefulness, and between her heavy pants, she spoke again. "Thank you so much for your help."

"As I said before, it's okay," Fukiyose answered with a smile, and being very happy that her ears had adapted themselves from the relentless gratitude that she had received in just two minutes. "And also, I'm not the one that should be given much credit regarding this situation," she continued. Her eyes took the sight of the one she saved in a mere glance, something that appeared to snap her mind a little to speak further.

"You see, her injuries..." Fukiyose said, and the attention of the two middle school girls was subconsciously given to the sleeping figure of Ruiko Saten, who appeared to disregard anything but sweet dream and cozy bed. "...was nothing compared to that purple haired girl. Indeed, I didn't see any major wounds on her body, but it appeared that she was in dire state, just like what I heard from that idiot."

Uiharu Kazari glanced slightly at the twin eyes of Fukiyose Seiri, being very confused of the sudden deep stare as though she sank into a certain deep thought and she was alone there. And for that, she could feel a certain aura of gloom that was emanated from the way her eyes seemed so void and the way she pursed her lips uncomfortably, something that raised a certain kind of fear to talk, as though one mistake in speaking could shatter everything. It was concern, just like what Uiharu assumed. Yet beyond of that, she could feel that the long haired-high school girl's thought was branched entirely to something that she was too blind to see.

Maybe the one she was worried about was not only the said purple haired girl... so who? Or what?

That challenge, the challenge to speak just like the weakness of Uiharu Kazari, was not a problem for the hazel haired girl, who inquired the student of a certain high school without trouble.

"Purple haired?" Mikoto said.

"Yeah," Fukiyose said, and every other thought that was spinning around her brain was gone, changed with an attempt to answer the afore-mentioned Misaka Mikoto. "I didn't really know what has happened, but that stranger girl just appeared out of nowhere when the commotion was over, unconscious, and that idiot carried her,"

"That idiot?" Misaka said, and for a span of seconds, Uiharu could hear that her voice was a little bit louder than before, as if the word 'idiot' snapped something in her thought, and for everything that Uiharu could observe regarding emotion and facial, she seemed a little bit pissed. Nevertheless, she could also observe that the emotion was stained by something that she didn't really comprehend, and that, just like what Saten Ruiko had taught her before, was maybe affection, or a little concern.

"Yeah, that idiot Kamijou," Fukiyose said without thinking, finding it suitable to match the word 'Kamijou' with 'idiot'. She sighed again, ruffling her long hair just before she resumed her words. "He always... eh? Where are you going?"

Uiharu Kazari could only see the leaving figure of the hazel haired girl as she ran quickly, with the equivalence of a horde of buffalos, forming a stampede were on her tail. She left the other two girls who watched her in perplexity, and Uiharu couldn't help but wondering whether Misaka Mikoto really recognized this 'idiot'.

* * *

><p>Kamijou Touma sat silently, watching the figure of a certain purple haired girl who was sleeping on the bed. His gaze was locked on the sleeping beauty, and for the most part, he was not infatuated by the dainty face that Itsuwa actually had, but rather, he looked at her as though she was dying and her only lifeline was hanging on the door of heaven, and he didn't know what to do. The injuries and slight wounds that he received from Raven Huer had nothing to do with the inner pain of being useless that he felt, and the thought that he felt so torturing never left him. Whatever it was, he was just there, mumbling some cursing words towards the messy haired magician and mourning slightly for the condition of the purple haired girl.<p>

The frog-faced doctor had just left, telling the spiky haired guy that he would discuss the condition of Itsuwa with other doctors. Nevertheless, still, he, of all the people, sensed that the last magic that Raven Huer released on Itsuwa was not a usual magic, for she didn't even wake up until now. That fact was also supported by the expression of the frog faced doctor when he checked her condition, because the facial that he wore was not the facial of a doctor that knew the truth, the facial that the doctor, or Heaven Canceller usually wore, but rather, it appeared that the words left the doctor's mouth, as though he was surprised, as if it was the first time for him seeing Itsuwa's case.

The spiky haired guy stared blankly at the hollow crevice below him, trying to rummage every other possibilities of recuperation for the purple haired girl, but then, what crossed his mind was a different thing. It was the image of Raven Huer, Raven Huer with his usual deck of cards, confronting him for the first time and asking for the whereabouts of Misaka Mikoto. A part of him really wanted to cry for any plausible explanation, and another part of him knew that the explanation itself was buried beneath the layer of invisible. But still, he was Kamijou Touma after all, and he would only shatter that layer of invisible, that illusion, to know more.

Right?

Speaking of that brat…

What was she, that biri-biri doing now anyway?

(He knew that he would be dead when he called Misaka Mikoto like that, but she was a brat.)

A shoe hit his head so hard, and Touma felt like he was taken by the angel of heaven. He fell from the chair with a low thud, head-first, and the pain that he felt made the injuries from the previous battle were nothing but mere itches.

…He would never call her brat again, whether she heard it or not.

The said hazel haired girl stormed in the room with such noises that Kamijou Touma wondered why she wasn't sued for being rambunctious and slightly wild in the hospital. Her gaze was darted to the falling figure of the spiky haired guy, and with the unimaginably speed (and also, the ferocity of a tiger), she approached him, grasping the collar part of Touma's shirt in exasperation. Without any further ado, she pulled him with so much force that could even defeat the sumo player, and there, he felt that the deadly aura of Misaka Mikoto began drowning him, as his guts shrank into nothing, and for the most important part, he was sweating everywhere.

That, just like what Kamijou Touma managed to assume, was Misaka-Mikoto-killer-mode.

"You!" Misaka shouted, disregarding the fact that they were in the hospital and those who suffered heart failure could die on the spot (and also, she somehow ignored the fact that they were so… close?). "What else have you done? Leaving me behind, no information, and the last, getting hurt like that?" she asked, more like a demand for an answer. The Imagine Breaker guy swore that he saw fire in her eyes and knuckles on her forehead.

"Mi-mi-misaka!" he stuttered slightly, much because of fear. His eyes rolled in order to avoid eye contact, but he failed as the deadly aura from Misaka Mikoto kept forcing him to look at her. "I-I-I-I'm helping Fu-fu-fukiyose to shop, but I met a magician there and I-I-I…"

"In other words," the Railgun said with a voice as though she really restrained the anger that needed to be channeled, so desperately needed to be. "You just went wherever you went; then, you met danger and your heroic principle obliged you to stay there and fought that danger alone, right?" she continued.

She read him like a book, really. The spiky haired guy gulped.

Then, his choice to avoid death was only one.

"I'm really sorry Misaka!" yeah, he said it, an apology for everything that built anger in the hazel haired girl's mind. His shout was no longer a usual apology, moreover a demand for it, but rather, it was like a plea for he knew that the angry Misaka Mikoto meant the death of Kamijou Touma, and no matter how strong his Imagine Breaker could negate her electricity, he was still dubious of his chance of living after confronting her in that state.

Misaka Mikoto responded the apology with a blank look, being completely surprised for the sudden action that the spiky haired guy had done. Her eyes never left his for a span of seconds, trying to rummage the meaning of apology that was hidden beneath his twin of eternity. And after twenty seconds the meaning remained unseen, she subconsciously released a certain wary sigh whilst her grip to Touma's collar was loosened. Slowly but surely, her lips curved upwards, smiling at the guy in front of her with a softened expression, and for the epilogue of her action, she began speaking, looking at the spiky haired guy with a smile.

"Ah well," she tilted her head a little bit, even though even she didn't know why she did it. "At least you came back," she said, and for another seconds, Kamijou Touma could see that her eyes sparkled brighter, glistening with such innocence that he wondered whether the girl in front of him was really Misaka Mikoto. She looked much cuter and more gorgeous, and what he could see that time was the original bliss of the hazel haired girl.

"Yeah, I always will," the spiky haired guy replied with a smile that showed much sense of originality, something that could make a certain saint from Amakusa Church fainted for being unable to bear the tingling feeling that she had in her stomach. "No need to worry about me."

Oh yeah, that natural beauty and cuteness of Misaka Mikoto was shattered in a mere blink.

"Do-don't get me wrong," she said all of sudden, her arms were folded in front of her cleavage that needed much nutrition. It was the time when her mind clicked open, realizing the embarrassing line that was clearly not her style. She was blushing, red to the very core, but still, her eyes didn't leave his, and he laughed at her in his mind for her stubborness. "I-I-I-I-I just thought that if you were hurt, I couldn't battle or defeat you any other time... why are you looking at me like that?" she demanded in the corner of her eyes, completely perplexed with the expression that the spiky haired guy gave to her.

That expression, that whimsical expression... needed a punch. Hard.

"Why... did you sound so tsundere?"

No, he didn't deserve a punch. A kick must be given.

And she did it.

Without any doubt, she buried her foot on Kamijou Touma's face. Even though the hazel haired girl was shorter than the spiky haired guy, the training that she always did in order to get free soft drink from the vending machine proved to be useful. Nevertheless still, the familiar crimson color on her cheek didn't leave, and she started mumbling audibly, denying the truth that she concealed imperfectly beneath the layer of pride and obscurity.

"I. Am. Not. A. Tsundere," she said, with pressure given to each words as though it was a certain order for the spiky haired guy to believe and to know. She should acknowledge other thing though, that the crimson color on her cheeks was the polar opposite of what she just said.

The spiky haired guy remained lifeless in his previous position though. The kick from Misaka was indeed... something, yeah, something that would make an martial artist awe-struck and shame-faced in awe, but he didn't budged from his previous position. And there, the corner of his eyes found other stupid things to say, and being an idiot just like what others perceived him to be, he said it without thinking.

"You wore that short again? So boring..." he said it even though almost all parts of his face were buried by Misaka Mikoto's shoe.

... That was enough hassle for her ears.

She gave him a round kick, straight to his head, and he felt like seeing God much earlier.

"Shut up!" Mikoto exclaimed loudly.

"Ah well, this is hospital, ladies and gentleman, not a playground for a bickering couple..." a voice suddenly could be heard, followed by the appearance of a certain frog faced doctor that entered the scene. He sighed inaudibly, seeing the childish attitude that the two teenagers had just exhibited.

"We are not couple! What kind of girl want to be paired with this low life idioooottt?" she exclaimed loudly, something that could make dead people came to live once more. Kamijou Touma, lying on the floor, felt like a dagger pierced his heart.

...

"You," Heaven Canceller replied swiftly.

...

Okay, he got the point.

"Anyway, I will inform you two about the condition of this poor girl. Will you lend your ears and listen to me carefully?" the frog faced doctor said, and with that, all of the stupid things were long forgotten, changed with an attempt to listen to the command and information from the said doctor as clearly and as soon as possible. The hazel haired girl, regardless the fact that she didn't know anything about the reason why the purple haired girl, or Itsuwa, lying there on the bed, also made a serious face.

"But, I want to ask you two something first..." Heaven Canceller said, closing his eyes as he said so.

"What is it?" Touma replied swiftly.

"Do you fight a magician?"

Kamijou Touma gulped. Misaka Mikoto was so surprised and she looked to and fro between the spiky haired guy and the frog faced doctor in order to know the truth of the question from Heaven Canceller. Out of the blue, the air turned to be so choking and freezing, and the draft was filled with gloom that stained the aura. The frog faced doctor though, looked so calm for he even sighed after he could predict the truth based on the sudden silence that spread quickly. And the silence kept surrounding them just until Kamijou Touma spoke hesitantly, as though the words were much foreign for him.

"Yeah, I am... but... How do you know anything about magic..."

"That's a long story," Heaven canceller shook his head. "That explained everything though. As you can see, her pulse remained steady, and she was still breathing, but the one which concerned me was that her pupil didn't react when I shot it with light, and all of her reflex and everything regarding sensory neuron didn't work. I had checked his brain using the best X and even Gamma ray, but I couldn't find any damage in her brain. She was and will be alive, but she couldn't react. She was blind, deaf, and also paralyzed, and even I was mesmerized by the capability of the said magician to have any spell like this," he explained carefully.

"But if this was magic, how couldn't I cure it? You know, my right hand could negate magic and esper power," he said, showing the said doctor his famous right hand so that Heaven Canceller could take a look at that better. But he just shook his head.

"So, Imagine Breaker eh? Aleister had said something about this," he said almost accidentally, just receiving some odd looks from the two teenagers in front of him. "Forget what I said. Indeed you can, but the problem is that the core of the magic, or maybe the centre of the magic is concentrated maybe on her spinal cord, the neuron that relay sensory information, not on outer skin. So if you want to negate it, I must peel off her skin until her sensory neuron could be seen, and you have to touch it with your right hand. She will die because of infection then," he explained.

Those words were enough to make the spiky haired guy fell to the endless trench of despair. "So... she will not wake up?" the last four words were really hard to be spoken by his tongue, and a part of him really wanted to cry on the spot.

"Oh, there's other way, but I couldn't help you about it," the doctor said with a certain hopeful smile that raised the spiky haired guy into normal again. "But maybe you," he pointed at Mikoto. "...could help her."

"Me? What do you mean?" Mikoto said in surprise. She indeed, wanted to help Itsuwa regained consciousness, but at that moment, she never imagined that she was the only one that could help her. "What could I do?"

"To remove that magic, we could use mental ability from a certain esper that you also knew..." he responded.

"Who?" she said; her mind was delayed for a fraction of seconds, just until she gasped, and an image of a certain blond haired girl crossed her mind. "Oh, no, you can't be saying," she gasped.

"Yeah," the doctor said. "That girl could help our poor little fellow."

"Doctor... You mean..." Touma said.

"Yeah, idiot. That blond haired girl, the Queen of Tokiwadai, 5th strongest esper in Academy City, the one who could control a mass of people with her remote control, the Mental Out."

And the last words, forming a name, sounded so hard to be spoken, just until Misaka Mikoto managed to say the name with much difficulty.

"My nemesis, Shokuhou Misaki."


End file.
